Cassoulet

So, Mark Cavanaugh gave me some duck breasts a couple weeks ago--duck he had shot himself. Talk about fresh! Given that I'm trying to lose some weight, it took me a little while to come up with a recipe that didn't involve copious amounts of rendered duck fat and potatoes to accompany the meat itself. After having an amazing cassoulet at my in-law's over the holidays, I decided to adopt a healthy version... It was quite tasty.

Cassoulet is a traditional French dish from Tollouse. It consists of beans baked with various braised meats--typically sausage and lamb, beef, or duck. It's a hearty dish, and perfect on a cold winter night. The problem is it takes FOREVER to make. This version is pretty lean, and can be made in about 90 minutes as opposed to several hours.

To make cassoulet, you essentially need beans and some nice, tender meat. I used lean chicken sausage and duck, but you could easily use beef, pork, lamb, or even chicken for a lighter flavor. Here is my version.

Ingredients:
4 lean sausage links
2 duck breasts (or 8-10 oz. lean meat of your choosing)
1 1/2 c. water
1 large yellow onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
3 14 oz. cans cannelini beans
1 14 oz. can diced tomatoes
2 tbsp. "Better than Bullion" beef base
4 sprigs Italian parsley
4 sprigs fresh thyme
1 sprig fresh rosemary
2-3 sprigs fresh sage
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground pepper
1/2 tsp ground allspice



Directions:

1. Using kitchen twine, tie the herbs into a bouquet.
2. Sautee onion and celery, salt and pepper, in a large cast iron or stainless pot with a tight fitting lid or braising pan over medium heat just until soft, about 5 mins.
3. Add the sausage links and meat and brown, cooking another 5-7 minutes (increasing the heat a little will improve browning, and thus also add flavor).
4. Add 1 1/2 c. water, the diced tomatoes, the 2 tbsp beef base, and stir to dissolve.
5. Add herb bouquet.
6. Cover and place in 375-degree oven and braise, covered, for an hour.
7. Remove braising pan from oven, remove herb bouquet and add the beans. Stir.
8. Place back in oven and cook, uncovered, for another 30 minutes.