Duck Meatballs with Roasted Apples

Method

Cube the raw duck breast with the fat cap and reserve. Rough chop the duck Confit, then In a food processor add, both duck breast meat and Confit. Puree the two meats while adding the cream and eggs. Once all the meat and wet ingredients are combined add garlic and thyme. Pulse in your food processor for a few more seconds until well incorporated, scoop and reserve duck mixture in a large bowl in your refrigerator While your duck mixture is cooling, dice your onion, carrot and bell pepper. In a large saut pan add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and your diced onion, saut until tender, then add your carrot and bell pepper. Saut all your vegetables until tender, season liberally with Salt and Pepper. Preheat a Sauce Pot with your duck fat. This will act as a poacher, not a fryer. We want tender soft meatballs, not crispy fried. So watch your temperature for a very low heat poach. With a 1 ounce scoop begin to scoop your meatball mixture when it is completely chilled. Float the meatballs into the sauce pot of duck fat carefully one at a time, do not crowd the pot or you will reduce the temperature to drastically and they won't cook. I recommend cooking no more than eight meatballs at a time. As they begin to float this is your signal that they are cooked. Remove them from the fat and place on a paper towel to rest. Finish scooping and poaching each meatball carefully, as they finish sprinkle with salt and pepper on their exit from the duck fat while they are hot. Once your meatballs are finished, reheat the pan with your onion, carrot, and pepper mixture. Slice thinly the fennel bulb, and dice your apple. Once the cooking vegetables are simmering add the fennel and apples, saut over high heat until both the fruit and vegetable are tender. Once they are tender add 1 Tablespoon of cold butter and swirl to create a pan sauce, season with salt and pepper. Taste for accuracy. For plating add several meatballs to the plate, scoop over the vegetable and apple mixture. To finish the meatballs spoon over the savory pan jus, this dish serves perfectly for family style or single plates.