Free Virtual Cooking Class
Cooking Masterclass
with Ariane Daguin, Founder
and CEO of D’Artagnan

Hosted by Adam Gopnik


LIVE on Zoom and Facebook
Friday, May 8, 2020
12pm ET
In English



Just in time for Mother’s Day, Ariane Daguin, native of southwest France, hosts an interactive cooking masterclass from her home kitchen featuring one of her favorite recipes: magret duck breast with apples and sautéed hen of the woods mushrooms.

A trained chef from a legendary French culinary family, Ariane will share valuable tips that will allow you to impress your family and friends with this typical recipe from the south of France.

Daguin will be joined by Adam Gopnik, journalist at The New Yorker.

In English
Duration 45 minutes

Magret duck breast with apples and hen of the woods mushrooms

  • View Recipe

    • Ingredients (serves two)

      2 magret duck breasts (or any duck breast)
      1 tub duck demi glace (or ½ cup chicken broth)
      1.5 oz truffle butter (optional)
      1 lb hen of the woods (or any type of mushroom)
      3 garlic cloves
      1 small bunch of parsley
      2 green apples, such as Granny Smiths
      Cider vinegar
      Salt, pepper, piment d’Espelette, sugar

      Equipment

      2 heavy sauté pans
      1 small saucepan
      1 slicing knife
      1 metal tong or spatula
      1 spoon

      Instructions

      1. Score the skin side of the duck breasts avoiding the flesh below.
        Season with salt and pepper.
      2. Put the breasts, skin side down, in a dry pan over low heat and let the fat render slowly, about 6 to 7 minutes. As the fat renders, pour it out in a separate container and reserve.
      3. Meanwhile, in the other pan, sauté the mushrooms, cut into small clusters and seasoned with salt and Espelette pepper, in half truffle butter half reserved duck fat.
      4. Mince garlic and parsley together.
      5. Peel the apple and slice it.
      6. When all the inner fat has rendered and the skin is nice and crisp, flip the duck breasts to the flesh side and bring heat to high. Cook 4 to 5 minutes.
      7. Put the duck breasts on a slicing board, loosely covered with aluminium foil. Let it rest for 4 minutes.
      8. Meanwhile, with the remaining small amount of duck fat in the pan, add in all of the apple slices. Season with salt, pepper and a little bit of sugar. When nicely colored (2 to 3 minutes), take out the best looking slices .They will go on top of the duck when plating.
      9. Over the remaining apple slices in the pan, pour 1 tablespoon of duck demi glace, 1 tablespoon of cider vinegar, and 1 tablespoon of Armagnac or Calvados. Let reduce while crushing the apple pieces left in the sauce (or using a hand blender).
      10. Add parsley/garlic mixture on top of the mushrooms 30 seconds before they have finished cooking.
      11. After the meat has rested, slice the duck breasts on a bias. Top with the reserved apple slices. Cover with sauce and serve with the mushrooms.

      Wine suggestions: a Madiran , a Cotes de Saint Mont, or a Cahors

Watch the Cooking Class

Ariane Daguin

Recognized as the mother of modern French food culture, Ariane Daguin is the founder, owner, and CEO of D’Artagnan, the renowned gourmet food purveyor.

  • Read More

    • Since 1985, D’Artagnan has introduced new epicurean foods to American cuisine by providing the finest foie gras, duck, poultry, meat, mushrooms, truffles, and charcuteries that follow the strictest animal husbandry and recipe traditions from France. A devoted advocate for natural and sustainable production, Ariane put D’Artagnan at the forefront of the organic movement in America, advocating organic, free-range chicken (years before the USDA allowed the word “organic” on the label), and humanely-raised veal that are served in the best restaurants in the United States. Ariane was awarded the Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur and is an Officier de l’ordre national du Mérite.

Adam Gopnik

Adam Gopnik is an American writer, essayist, journalist, and commentator. He has been a staff writer for The New Yorker since 1986, writing non-fiction, fiction, memoir and criticism.

  • Read More

    • He is a three-time winner of the National Magazine Award for Essays and for Criticism and of the George Polk Award for Magazine Reporting. In March 2013, Gopnik was awarded the medal of Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Republic. Gopnik’s newest book, A Thousand Small Sanities: The Moral Adventure of Liberalism, will be released in Spring 2019.