Berry Marinated Duck Breasts with Polenta
Duck breasts are one of my favorite “guilty pleasures” and I tend to eat them at least once a month. These berry marinated duck breasts have the perfect balance of sweet and savory which blends wonderfully with the asparagus and polenta. Duck breast is an excellent source of iron and is high in lean protein, and while it does have higher fat levels, those fat levels are actually good for you (those levels are “monounsaturated fats that help lower LDL cholesterol than saturated fats, which can have a negative effect on blood cholesterol levels. This means duck fat’s nutritional profile is more similar to olive oil than other animal fats”- source). Duck breasts are actually very easy to cook and if you score the duck fat, you can also cut down on the fat levels too. – Kara
Serves 2
Ingredients:
- 2 Duck Breasts (I use Maple Leaf Farm)
- 1/2 tsp of Fenugreek powder
- 1 tsp of Allspice Berries
- 4.5 oz of blueberry jam
- 1/2 of Polenta
- 1 cup of Milkadamia (or your choice of milk)
- 6 asparagus spears
- 3 tbsp of vegan butter
*Optional: 1 tbsp of freeze dried basil
Directions:
Duck:
Marinate the duck breasts at least one day prior to cooking. Add the fenugreek powder, allspice berries, and blueberry jam together and make sure to coat both sides of the duck breasts.
When ready to cook, heat a medium size pan to medium high heat, spray the pan, and then add the duck breasts with the marinade to the pan. Make sure to place the duck breasts fat side down first and cook for about 5-7 mins or until the fat has browned. Flip and cook for additional 5 mins for rare or 7 mins medium rare. Be aware that the duck will continue to cook once it has been removed from the heat.
Once finished, remove the duck from the heat and let it sit for 5 mins before slicing.
Polenta:
Bring 1.5 cups of water to a boil in a medium pot. Add 1 tsp of garlic salt, 1 tbsp of the vegan butter, and the polenta.
Then immediately reduce the heat to medium low.
Whisk intermittently for about 5 mins and then remove from the heat.
Then stir in 1 cup of your milk choice and 1 tbsp of the vegan butter. I also like to stir in the tbsp of freeze dried basil too.
Asparagus:
Add the 1 tbsp of butter and the asparagus to a large pan, over medium low heat. Season the asparagus with garlic salt and black pepper. Cook for about 10 mins with the lid on or until the asparagus has cooked through.
Serves 2 | Calories per serving : 665 | Fat: 39.1 g | Carbs:43.9 g | Net Carbs: 41.2 g | Protein: 31.8 g |Iron: 29.2 %
