Delicious Foie Gras Treat

Foie gras fried in butter and served on a bed of flambéed apple rosette, surrounded with curly endive salad and seasoned with a veal stock flavored with Medeira and Calvados, this not you typical healthy recipe by Chef Johann Lafer of the famous Johann Lafers Stromburg is a delightful appetizer that will please the most sophisticated of palates. The rich and creamy foie gras is browned to perfection and perfectly complemented by the sweet and tart apples. The refreshingly crisp salad cuts into the richness of the foie gras and the veal stock with Calvados and Medeira adds an exquisitely savory element.

Foie gras is quite a delicate ingredient and should be cooked perfectly or the perfect texture will be ruined. The best way to cook foie gras is quickly on high heat just like searing steaks. The foir gras is seared on both sides, flipping only once and cooking each side just until the exterior turns a beautiful golden brown color. This gives the foir gras a subtle crunch while keeping the interior soft and melt-in-your-mouth decadent. Now the only thing to think about is choosing the right wine for this dish.

The presentation of this dish and the way the ingredients are arranged on the plate is a very important component for the full gustatory enjoyment of your guests. The thinly sliced apples are arranged like a rose blooming, also known as a rosette. For best results, the apples should be sliced the same size and thinness so that it looks impeccable when arranged. Layer them gently one over the other like a fan that opens into a full circle.

Make the veal stock ahead of time using veal bones and meat or carcass. For a flavorful stock, simmer the bones overnight or half of the day and diligently skim off the foam from time to time. Never let the stock boil to concentrate the flavors and use a heavy bottomed and thick saucepan or Dutch oven.

Ingredients

2 apples

1 ½ tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon cane sugar

4 slices foie gras (goose liver, 2 to 2 1/2 oz. each)

walnut oil

1 tablespoon veal fond with Madere Calvados apple brandy

½ lb. salad (rucola, roquette or curly endive)

grilled pine nuts

olive oil

white balsamic vinegar

1. Peel then slice apple thinly. Melt some butter in a frying pan and gently heat the apples. Sprinkle some brown sugar. Add a few drops of calvados. Using a kitchen blowtorch, glaze the sugar over the apples. Set aside when cooked.

2. In a separate pan, fry two slices of foie gras in butter. When done, place on some paper napkins to remove excess oil.

3. Heat up the veal stock with Medeira and add some calvados.

4. Arrange the apple rosette on a serving plate. Surround the rosette with a few leaves of curly endive salad to decorate. Sprinkle the leaves with fine nuts, Greek olive oil, and white Balsamic vinegar. Arrange the foie gras on top of the dish. Pour some heated veal stock. As a final touch, sprinkle some veal stock around about the edges of the serving plate.