Carrots Cointreau Recipes

ROASTED DUCKLINGS IN ORANGE SAUCE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425°F. If convection is an option, choose it.
• Make the ducks. Cut away the flap of fatty skin from the neck, and scrape any loose fat from inside the cavities. Prick the skin all over gently with a sharp fork, or cross-hatch it with a sharp knife. Be careful not to pierce the meat.
• Fill an 18-quart stock pot (or as large as you have) about two-thirds full with water, and add the salt. Place the bunches of thyme and rosemary and the garlic cloves in it. Bring to a rapid boil. (You may need to use two pots if you do not have a single pot large enough to hold both ducklings at once; if so, divide the thyme and rosemary into smaller held-together bunches, and divide the garlic between the pots.) Place the ducks in the pot. If they pop up, keep them submerged using a smaller pot full of water or some other weight. Be aware of overflow. Bring the water back to a slow boil. Simmer the ducks for about 30 minutes. Remove them, and use paper towels to dry them thoroughly.
• Stuff each of the ducks' cavities with half of the boiled thyme, rosemary, and garlic and the quartered orange.
• Line the bottom of a large shallow roasting pan with the onions, carrots, and the orange rounds. Place the ducks, breast-side down, on top. Massage them with the Cointreau. This will give them a mahogany finish. Let them sit for 10 minutes for the skin to absorb the liqueur. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• Roast until the bottoms brown, about 20 minutes. Turn them breast-side up, and lower the oven temperature to 350°F. Several times during roasting, spoon off any excess fat as it accumulates, or suck it up using a baster. Use some of the fat to baste the ducks, and set the rest aside, saving some for the sauce.
• Depending on how long you boiled the ducks and the size of the ducks, roasting time will be another hour or longer. The ducks are done when a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers at least 180°F, or until the juices run clear and the leg bones wiggle easily. You want the meat to slide off the bones. Don't be afraid of overcooking these. Ducks don't dry out easily. The skin should be crisp. If not, no worries. You will pass the pieces under the broiler before serving. (If the ducks are too crisp and the meat is not finished cooking, cover them with foil as you continue roasting.) Once the ducks are ready, remove them from the oven, and cover them with aluminum foil while you finish the sauce.
• Meanwhile, make the sauce. Combine the stock, giblets, and necks in a saucepot over medium-high heat, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low to maintain a gentle boil, until the stock is reduced by half.
• Finish the sauce when you have retrieved rendered duck fat from the roasting duck. In a medium saucepan, warm the duck fat over medium heat. Add the flour, whisking with a fork as you do so. Remove the giblets and necks from the stock reduction, and discard. Add the stock to the duck fat-flour mixture, raise the heat to medium-high, and stir continuously to prevent lumps as you bring it to a slow boil. Add the Cointreau, vinegars, orange juice, marmalade, and orange peel to the pan. Bring back to a boil, melting the marmalade, then simmer uncovered on low heat until the sauce thickens and is reduced. Preheat a broiler with the rack set a notch or two down from the top position.
• When the ducks have rested at least 20 minutes, use a sharp knife or poultry scissors to split them and cut the breasts from the legs. Discard the orange quarters, herbs, wings, and any pockets of fat that remain. Slip the breast meat from the bones. Leave the legs intact. Put a little sauce in a broiling pan, and lay the duck pieces on top. Spoon a little sauce on top of each piece. Put them under the broiler for about 1 minute to crisp and glaze. Watch them carefully; the sugar in the sauce caramelizes quickly.
• Place the pieces on a platter, and decorate with thin, round slices of orange. Serve with additional sauce on the side.

CARROTS COINTREAU

Steps:

• Parboil peeled baby carrots in boiling salted water for 5 minutes. Drain. Place carrots into buttered 1 1/2 quart baking dish.
• In a small bowl, combine cointreau, brandy, honey and lemon juice. Pour mixture over the carrots. Toss to coat carrots.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Stir, sprinkle with parsley and serve.

CARROTS A LA SIDECAR

Steps:

• Peel the carrots and cook them in lightly salted water for about 15 minutes or until just tender-crisp.
• Meanwhile, melt the butter over low heat in a small saucepan. Stir in the honey, then mix in the lemon juice, Cointreau, and brandy. Simmer gently, then keep warm.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• Transfer the carrots to an oven-proof casserole and pour the "Sidecar" sauce over them.
• Bake at 350 for 20-30 min, turning them occasionally in the sauce until it starts to glaze.
• *Note: You could substitute Triple Sec for the Cointreau, or even substitute orange juice for the Cointreau and double the brandy.

"BIRTHDAY" CARROT CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING AND COINTREAU CARROTS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Butter a jelly roll pan and line with parchment. Set aside.
• Take the carrots and chop into large pieces, then mince in a food processor until you have a fine texture. Drain pineapple and finely chop walnuts. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl add flour, baking soda, baking powder and spices together. In a separate bowl mix buttermilk, molasses, eggs, vegetable oil and dark brown sugar together.
• Now combine wet and dry ingredients together to make a batter then fold in the carrots, pineapple and walnuts. Pour into the prepared pan and bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes until cake is set and springs back when gently pressed in the middle. Remove the pan from the oven and allow cake to cool on a rack while you prepare the frosting and cointreau carrots (recipes below). Once the cake has cooled, cut into three rectangles by cutting the cake lengthwise twice. Stack the cake up into three tiers with cream cheese frosting in between each layer. Frost the outside of the entire finished cake - smoothing off the edges and corners (an offset spatula works well). Top with Cointreau carrot rounds and drizzle a little of the syrup on top as well.
• Using a kitchen mixer, combine cream cheese and butter until blended and you have a smooth, light texture. Add the vanilla, lemon zest and powdered sugar and beat until combined. Continue to beat until smooth and glossy - about 7 minutes.
• Slice carrot up into rounds. Add carrot, butter, sugar, cointreau and salt to a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and reduce until syrupy - about 5 minutes.