Duck with mash, pears and a cherry-red wine sauce

Okay, so this definately doesn't fit my fast cheap and simple criteria, but boy, do I love a bit of duck!

Mash potato, there's nothing worse than lumpy mash, I can only recommend you go out and buy yourself a potato ricer, seriously, so worth it!

'Note of thanks to my mother in law who got us ours ;)'

So tonight I'm cooking duck breast - pan seared and then oven cooked.
Pile of creamy garlic mash potato
Steamed asparagus
Caramelised pear and fig
And a red wine and cherry sauce (because I found some mini jars of morello cherry jam in the cupboard!)

I'm not going to say use this or that type of potato or veg. But what I will say is get it fresh and get it local! I'm always inspired by our local greengrocers and it's such good value I'm never afraid to experiment and buy something new! Hence the fresh figs tonight. Seriously, no matter how hard I try filling my basket, I never spend more than £10!

First, make your mash, it's up to you how you like it, but we made it with a dab of butter and 100ml cream, 1 clove of garlic and seasoning. The potato ricer makes it really smooth and creamy, put it to one side to re-heat later.

Pre-heat your oven to 200*C. Cut criss-cross over the duck skin and season with salt and pepper. Heat up a frying pan with no oil untill it's very hot and put the duck skin side down, reduce the heat down to about half-way and cook for 6 minutes. Flip it onto its front and leave for 30 seconds, then slide into the oven. Leave it for 5 minutes if you like it pinker, up to 10 for well done.

Whilst the duck is in the oven, in a small saucepan make the sauce.
So 2 3rds of a little bottle of wine, 2 mini jars of cherry jam (or 80g if you're being precise). A heaped teaspoon of brown sugar. dessert spoon of balsamic vinegar and a couple of slivers of a orange citrus (I had a satsuma in the fruit bowl). Bring to boil and then turn down to a simmer for 5 minutes.

Get your asparaguas on to steam/boil/griddle however you like.

Once the duck is done get it out and remove it from the pan to rest.
Quarter a fig and peel and wedge a pear ( don't forget the cut out the woody bits), get the frying pan you cooked the duck in and put back on the heat, add the fig and pear wedges and turn occasionally until the pears are nicely golden.
Add a knob of butter and a dsrt spoon full of the duck pan juices to the sauce.

Just re-heat the mash and put it all together on the plate, gorgeous!

Pictures coming soon once I upload it! :)