Squab Marsala Recipes

Steps:

• Heat oven to 450 degrees. Mix together bacon, pear and mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper.
• Rinse and dry squabs. Rub with butter. Stuff cavity of each with 3 sprigs thyme, 3 sage leaves and a clove of garlic. Place in baking dish and roast for 5 minutes. Reduce heat to 400 degrees and roast 10 minutes more. Remove from oven. Wrap each squab in foil to keep warm.
• Stir wine into baking dish, scraping the bottom. Spread the mushroom mixture into the baking dish and cook for 20 minutes. Stir in stock. Increase oven temperature to 475 degrees. Unwrap squabs and place them on top of the mushroom mixture. Return the baking dish to the oven for 5 minutes.
• Remove squabs to a cutting board. Spread mushroom mixture, including any juices in the pan, on a warm serving platter. Using poultry or kitchen shears, or a sharp heavy knife, cut the squabs in quarters. Arrange on the platter and garnish with thyme sprigs.

Steps:

• Coat a large saute pan with olive oil over high heat. Sprinkle the squab breasts and legs with salt and pepper. When the pan is hot, place the squab skin-side down into the pan and sear until golden and crispy, about 6 minutes. Flip and continue to cook until the squab is medium rare, 1 minute longer. Transfer to a plate to rest.
• Degrease the pan, leaving a couple tablespoons of fat. Add the shallots to the drippings in the pan and sprinkle with salt, scraping up the drippings with a wooden spoon. Saute the shallots until they begin to soften, 1 minute, and then add the mushrooms and saute until they just start to soften up.
• Carefully pour in the cognac off the heat, and then return the pan to the heat until the alcohol has completely cooked off and the pan is almost dry. Pour in the marsala and ignite again, allowing the wine to cook until the flame dies down. Add the chicken stock and simmer to reduce the sauce slightly, about 3 minutes.
• Return the squab to the pan and simmer gently to heat through, 1 minute. Plate 1 leg and breast per plate. Remove the sauce from the heat and stir in the creme fraiche and butter, whisking until just incorporated. Stir in the parsley and sage. Taste and adjust the seasoning, and then pour the sauce around the squab.

Steps:

• For the glaze: Add the sugar to an unheated rondeau. Gently heat the pan, stirring constantly, to create a dry caramel. Stop the cooking process by adding the champagne vinegar. Cook and reduce by half. Add white port, and again reduce by half. Add white wine, and again reduce by half. Add the orange and lemon zest, cinnamon sticks, and pomegranate juice. Cook and reduce by half. Strain. Transfer liquid to a clean saucepot and reduce until it is a syrupy consistency. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• For the vegetables: Heat 2 saute pans, and put 1 tablespoon of corn oil in each. Add the plantains to 1, and toss to coat. Add the butter to the pan, and sprinkle with sugar and a dash each of salt and pepper. Note: If the plantains are extremely ripe, which is ideal, you can omit the sugar: the plantains will contain enough. Continue to cook until the plaintains are golden, then remove them to a paper towel. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Next, heat the other tablespoon of oil in the other pan and add the long beans. Coat them with the oil. Add the shallots and bacon, and cook all until tender. Add the carmelized plaintains to the pan, toss everything together, and cook for about 1 minute. Remove from heat and set aside.
• For the squab liver: In a saute pan, heat corn oil. Pan sear the liver to a rosy hue. Remove from heat.
• For the squab: Season the squab with salt and pepper. Heat a small rondeau, add 1 1/2 tablespoons of the oil and heat to the oil's smoking point. Place the squab in the pan, and cook on each side until a golden brown color is achieved. Remove from the pan and allow to rest for 12 minutes. Debone the squab so that you have 2 sections of meat, each consisting of half the breast meat and the meat of 1 leg. Heat a clean rondeau, and add the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons of oil. Cook the squab meat until the fat is rendered and the skin is crisp. After 2 minutes, add the butter. When all steam has evaporated and the butter begins to bubble, baste the squab for 3 minutes. Remove from the rondeau and allow to rest. With a kitchen brush, coat the squab with the pomegranate glaze. Plate with warmed vegetables, and garnish with mint.