Duck confit should be on the list of best ingredients for a quick meal. It is precooked and all you have to do is warm and crisp the skin. It is traditionally served with frisée lettuce or red cabbage.Without the duck, the salad makes an excellent first course. Buy a selection of bitter lettuce from your farmers market or the grocery store. Frisée, arugula, mustard greens, kale sprouts, tatsoi, radicchio and dandelion leaves are all excellent.

Servings: 4

Ready In: 32 minutes

Duck Confit:

4 legs duck confit

Bitter Lettuce Salad:

12 cups bitter lettuce, torn

Shallot Vinagrette:

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

½ cup shallots, chopped

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

½ teaspoon maple syrup

⅓ cup olive oil

salt and pepper

2 tablespoons parsley, chopped

Duck:

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Place legs in cold non-stick skillet. Turn heat to medium low and cook leg for about 8 to 10 minutes, until skin crisps slightly and some fat is released. Turn over and cook the other side for 1 minute. Place legs on baking sheet and reserve until needed.

Bake for 15 minutes or until legs are heated through and skin is crisp. To serve, place the leg on top of dressed salad (see bitter lettuce salad recipe) and scatter potatoes on the side.

Salad:

Combine lettuces. Whisk together mustard, shallots, vinegar and maple syrup. Slowly whisk in oil. Season with salt and pepper and finish with parsley.

Toss salad with vinaigrette just before serving.