Instructions

Remove duck breasts from refrigerator 30 minutes before cooking. Using the tip of a kitchen knife, cut out diamond patterns on the skin-side. Breadcrumb Crust: Cut two big slices of a fresh baguette, lengthwise. Spread unsalted butter on top and bake at 160°C for 20 mins. Place the whole nuts (the quantity is up to you) and the cocoa nibs in a blender. Once the slices of bread are nice and golden, cut into smaller chunks and add to blender. Mix together until you get a fairly fine, uniform powder. Smoked Chocolate Ganache: Place the sawdust and sprig of thyme at the bottom of a gratin dish or a (metal) mixing bowl. Light it with an extra-long match. Then place a grill over the top of the dish and a small plate with your chocolate in large chunks. Cover it all with a large plate and leave for 2 to 3 mins. Put water and butter in a pan together and bring to a boil. Pour into a mixing bowl and fold in the chunks of chocolate. Mix together, then strain to obtain a smooth, shiny mixture. Cover with cling film and refrigerate no more than 20 mins.

Pumpkin Purée Set the oven to 200°C. Rinse the whole pumpkin or squash then place in a baking dish. Put it in the oven without any oil or butter. The skin will turn black but that's normal. Let it cook for 30 to 40 mins; check the doneness by sticking a knife blade into the flesh. The squash/pumpkin is cooked when the blade slides through easily. Once cooked, cut into four pieces, remove the seeds and water. Place the flesh in a mixing bowl, add room-temperature butter (removed from refrigerator 10 minutes prior) and the fleur de sel. Blend together. Depending on the texture of purée you want, you can add some semi-skim or even whole milk. Duckling Breasts For medium-rare breasts: Heat a pan (on low-medium heat) without oil or butter. Lay the breasts with the skin side down and cook about ten minutes (diamond cuts on the skin is important so the heat spreads through the meat evenly). Turn off the heat and cover the pan to finish cooking gently. Remove any fat left by the meat. Let the meat stand 1 hour before serving. After an hour, set the oven to 120°C In a baking dish, lay the breasts skin-side down, then sprinkle the top with breadcrumbs to form a 'crust'. Bake for 15 mins.