Roast Duck with Pear and Dates

Roasted duck has always been a big part of Christmas Eve dinner for me as I was growing up in Denmark. A whole roasted duck with crispy golden skin is magnificent food and even more when stuffed with a healthy appetizing pear and date stuffing.

Ingredients

 

1 duck (2.2kg)

3 tbls butter (60g)

1 sliced brown onion (150g)

2 stalk celery (220g)

1 tsp dried mixed herbs

2 peeled, chopped and cored pears (400g)

1 cup chopped dates (160g)

½ bunch chopped parsley (15g)

½ cup toasted chopped almonds (80g)

Method

Rinse the duck thoroughly inside and season with salt and pepper. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat and add the onion, celery and mixed herbs. Season with salt and pepper and cook for approx 10 minutes until onion is soft. Allow cooling before mixing in a bowl with pear, dates, parsley and almonds. Place the stuffing into the duck cavity and use skewers in the skin to close the cavity holes. Place the duck on a V shaped rack on a baking tray. Roast uncovered in a pre-heated oven 200° C on lower rack) for approx. 2 hours. When the back of the duck is browned turn duck breast side up and baste the duck several times during roasting. If you prefer nice crispy duck skin, baste the duck with the beer or salty water and increase the temperature to 220° C for 10 minutes.  Remove duck from roasting pan and place in a serving dish. Serve with caramelized potatoes, red cabbage, steamed vegetables and red wine sauce.

Note: Roasting time for duck is approx. 45 minutes per kg in a 190ºC oven when it is not filled with stuffing.