Chef Phillip Foss, Lockwood, Chicago
Medjool Dates Filled with Duck Rillette – Spiced Beluga Lentils, Morels, Foie Gras Foam, Purple Pea Blossoms
For 6 servings Ingredients for Duck Rillette 1 duck leg 4 oz duck fat 1 tsp garlic, minced 3 sprigs fresh thyme ¼ of bay leaf Rock sea salt and cracked black pepper (to taste) Method Toss the duck leg in a mixing bowl with the thyme sprigs, garlic, salt and pepper. Place on a rack and refrigerate uncovered overnight. Preheat a conventional oven to 270° F. Melt the duck fat in a heavy gauged sauce pan and add the duck leg. Bring the duck fat to a simmer, cover with a circled piece of parchment paper and place in the oven for 2-2½ hours until the meat falls off of the bone. Remove from the oven and cool to room temperature. While still warm, remove the leg from the duck fat and pull off the meat using the tines of two forks. Add some of the rendered duck fat back in to moisten, adjust seasoning if needed, and set aside in refrigerator. Decant the remaining duck fat and keep warm. Note – This can be prepared several days in advance and stored in sterilized glass jars. 4 oz rendered duck fat 2 cups black beluga lentils 1 cup carrot brunoise 1 cup celery root brunoise 1 cup minced shallot 1 T Asian 5 spice 1 tsp star anise; ground 1 tsp fresh cracked black pepper 2 oz sherry vinegar Method Heat the duck fat in a heavy gauged, 2 qt sauce pan over medium high heat. Add the carrot, celery root and shallot and cook until golden brown. Add the 5 spice, star anise and black pepper. Continue to cook over the heat while continuously stirring until the aromas of the spices awaken. Add the lentils and stir to coat. Top with the chicken stock, bring to a boil, lower the heat to a strong simmer and cook for about 20 minutes or until lentils are tender and most of the stock has cooked out. Add salt and sherry vinegar to taste. Keep warm. Ingredients for Foie Gras Foam 3 oz foie gras trimmings 1 cup skim milk 1 oz sherry vinegar Kosher salt to taste Method Place the milk and foie gras trimmings in a 1 quart conical bain marie (liquid should only fill container by no more than half). Place in a 190° F water bath until a temperature of 155° F. Add the salt and the sherry vinegar. Using a hand held immersion blender, submerge the blade so that it is half in the liquid and process over high speed. Adjust seasoning as desired and keep warm. Preheat a conventional over to 225°F Heat butter in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the shallots to sweat and the morels. Cook until tender, remove from the pan and reduce juices to a glaze. Return morels to pan and season with salt. Keep warm. Carefully peel the skin off of the medjool dates. Using the tip of a paring knife, carefully remove the pit through the bottom of the date. Using a tweezers, fill in the duck rillette. Place on a baking sheet and brush with the warm duck fat and place in the oven to warm through. Spoon the lentils in 3 sections on each of 6 warmed plates, and stand one of the morels and one of the dates next to each. Re-emulsify the foie gras foam using the same technique as described above with the hand held immersion blender. Add Purple pea blossoms and serve.
Ingredients for Beluga Lentils 
To Plate