Blogger Clue Picnic – Kellis Kitchen
It’s Blogger CLUE time and this month’s theme is “Picnic”.
I received Heather from Girlichef as my fellow blogger and as I perused her blog looking for just the right picnic recipe, I found two that I felt I must make. She has been a blogger a long time and has so many wonderful recipes – she’s a bread baker extraordinaire as well as making some of the best Mexican food I’ve ever seen. A great girl that I’ve enjoyed getting to know over the last few years, honored to get her blog so I had more time to learn even more about her Michiana cooking style. Michiana is a region of Northern Indiana and South Western Michigan centered on South Bend, Indiana………..that’s for those of you, like me, who didn’t already know what that was.
First I chose her Turkey and pear wraps. They looked so inviting for a hot summer’s day meal. I hoped she would be okay with me making them Duck as our family does not really care for Turkey. Also – have you ever tasted duck and pear together? It is sublime, especially if you add a bit of red onion a long with Heather’s curried aioli. Spicy, sweet, and tangy all at once, every single bite is very complex. When you add to it the tartness of the freshly squeezed limeade and Chia Seeds – whose health benefits are widely known – it’s a winning combination that we enjoyed for two nights in a row while it rained cats and dogs outside. As you can see from my photos, the sun was not blessing us much and only for about 15 minutes on that day. Just enough time to assemble the wraps and snap a few photos. There is less duck used in the wrap than Heather used turkey because duck is so rich that it would ruin the entirety of the wrap to put too much in.
To prepare the duck (I always use Maple Leaf Farms Duck – no one paid me or gave me anything to say that) you just need to dip the duck in boiling water and leave it there for 10 minutes and so you will need a big and deep pot – I use my largest stock pot.
Duck with Pear Wraps and Limeade with Chia Seeds
Pre heat the oven to 425F.
After 10 minutes, pull the duck out and prick the skin a bit – stuff the cavity with 1 onion quartered as well as a lemon and 2 oranges also quartered. Stuff those pieces in all places.
Pat the outside of the duck dry with paper towels and sprinkle around salt and pepper. Put the duck on a rack in your roasting pan and bake for 15 minutes then turn the oven down to 350F, letting it cook for 45 minutes.
Take the duck out, gingerly turn the duck over and pour out the duck fat into an oven proof bowl (save this stuff to fry some potatoes in – it makes them taste incredible!)
Put it back into the oven and left it roast for 35 more minutes. Pull the duck out, again gingerly turn it over and then pour out that duck fat.
Return the duck to the oven for another 30 minutes, take it out and tent the foil over top for at least 20 minutes to let it rest. Then you can carve and serve in the wraps – Mmmmmm……good!
Duck – Kellis Kitchen
The Curried Aioli is:
½ Cup Mayo, 1 clove of minced garlic, 1 teaspoon ground curry – mix it all up and store in the fridge for at least an hour or so before you make the wraps.
Heat the flour tortillas for about 20 seconds in a hot skillet.
Slather on some of the aioli, layer on the lettuce, thinly sliced red onion and pear as well we some duck.
Roll up tightly then wrap a brightly colored napkin around and tape at back – it helps hold the wrap together and then serve with limeade.
Limeade Recipe:
5 medium limes squeezed juice
Some Chia Seeds (optional – they have great health benefits but I didn’t care for the gummy texture)
4 cups of cold water
1 cup water/1 cup sugar in medium saucepan on medium heat stirred until sugar is all dissolved – it’s a simple syrup recipe my nana used.
Mix the simple syrup, lime juice and cold water in a pitcher, add some ice and slices of lime.
Rim the glass with chia seeds and even drop a few into the glass then fill it with lovely limeade – just delicious!
Now then – check out everyone’s Picnic post. Can you see who got me??!?
- Lisa from Authentic Suburban Gourmet – Olive Sables (I really had to find out what this actually was!)
- Christy from Confessions of a Culinary Diva
- Alice from A Mama, Baby and Shar-pei in the Kitchen – Green Bean & Corn Salad
- Azmina from Lawyer Loves Lunch – Chicken Salad with Peanut Dressing
- Kelli from Kelli’s Kitchen – That’s little ol’ me!
- Kim from Liv Life – Thomas Keller’s Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Stacy from Food Lust People Love – Tuscan Bean Salad
- Lea Ann from Cooking on the Ranch – Loaded Baked Potato Salad
- Kathleen from Bakeaway with Me – Carrot Cake Cookies
- Anna from annaDishes – Puff Pastry Antipasto Squares
- Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm – White Beans with Bacon and Rosemary
- Jean from Lemons and Anchovies – Watermelon Feta Salad
- Heather from girlichef – Chopped Salad with Oregano Dressing
- Liz from That Skinny Chick Can Bake – Kelli’s Nana’s Fried Apple Pies!
- Christiane from Taking on Magazines – California Quinoa Greek Salad
- Debra from Eliot’s Eats Pimento Cheese, Hummus & Deviled Eggs – an entire picnic!
- Kathy from A Spoonful of Thyme – BBQ Baked Beans
- Rebekah from Making Miracles – Oatmeal Peanut Butter Date Cookies
- Lauren from Sew You Think You Can Cook – Apple Chips
- Kate from Kate’s Kitchen – BBQ Chicken Salad with Smoky BBQ Dressing
- Aly from Cooking in Stilettos – Waldorf Salad – That was always my dad’s favorite!
Such a gourmet picnic, Kelli! Both your dishes sound spectacular!!! I was so glad to cook from your blog this month 🙂 xo
I can’t wait to see what you did! 🙂
Yum Kelli, this is one high end picnic you put together here. Perfect for entertaining when you aim to impress with casual elegance.
Thanks Wendy but on the farm on I grew up on, Duck was just one of the many things we regularly ate! 🙂
Kelli! First of all, you have to know that I ADORE the fact that you substituted duck in these wraps…especially Maple Leaf Farms duck (I actually AM a MLF ambassador)! 😉 I think I’d love them even more with duck than I did with turkey. And limeade w/ chia is one of my favorite refreshing drinks. I’d say perfect picnic food! Thanks so much for your kind words. Now…scooch over and make room on that blanket.
I didn’t know you were a Maple Leaf Farms Ambassador! Wow – I have always used them and think they rock. They also have great recipes on their website! I’m glad you enjoyed what I made – it sure was good!
I have never prepared duck. In fact, I have only eaten it once and that was many years ago. I do believe that I am missing out on something good! Your picnic fare looks amazing…..
Thank you so much!
This is my kind of picnic food! I love duck but I’ve never prepared it myself. Can’t wait to try this!
Thank you! You will love it!
Wow! That roasted duck looks fabulous! And the duck and pear wraps sound mouthwatering! Great choice for a picnic!
Thank you!
What a stunning combination and so perfect for a picnic. Love the flavor profiles – simply divine!
Thank you!
I’d have never thought of pairing duck with pear, but I can imagine how sublime the two flavors are together. It looks absolutely fantastic.
Thank you – it does taste great!
oooh duck and pear is a great combination also! 😉 love this!
Thank you!!
MMMM, I’ve never thought about duck and pears together but now that you’ve brought it up, I’m certainly going to in the future! And, even though I have a killer curried hot fruit recipe with pear in it, I’ve never used curried aioli on a sandwich. Two great ideas for future cooking!
Thank you very much!
What a great idea! I would have never thought to put duck in wrap but it sounds awesome. I’ve also never made it myself but I might have to try this! Wraps are perfect for a picnic, great choice!
Thanks for dropping by Anna – they were great!
That curried aioli sounds incredible. Especially with pear and poultry.
Thank you!
I have to second the comments the above! This looks like one deliciously gourmet picnic spread!
Thank you!
We love duck and turkey but I love the switch up and that roasted duck looks sooooo gooooood! Love the curried aioli too!
Thank you!
Now that is a true picnic!!! Well done Kelli! And thank you so much for all of your sharing that you did for us! XOXO
Thanks for dropping by Kim! I have always loved sharing other people’s posts – I know, It’s strange… 🙂
I’ve made many of Heather’s wonderful recipes. These wraps and the drink look absolutely delicious. What a perfect picnic pair! =)
Wow—Duck scares me. 🙂 What a delicious looking dish, though. I was just thinking of adding some chia seeds to some sangria. Does that negate the health benefits? 🙂