Crafted by Food & Beverage Director Aaron Turner & Chef de Cuisine Kelley Storey (Brentwood Bay Resort)
Photo Janis Jean

Earthy, comforting, and perfectly suited to the colder months, delicata squash from North Star Organics celebrates the beauty of winter cooking. Grown less than 10 kilometres from Brentwood Bay Resort, this seasonal ingredient brings warmth and depth to three distinctive dishes.

Its naturally sweet, creamy flesh forms pillowy squash gnocchi, paired with crisp duck breast and a vibrant cranberry gastrique. Roasted delicata adds richness alongside chicken liver pâté, brioche and tart Oregon grape jelly. Whipped into a light goat cheese mousse with thyme and chives, the squash shines once more. Thoughtfully grown and harvested in winter, North Star Organics’ delicata squash reflects the flavour, comfort and locality of the season.

Squash Gnocchi with Duck Breast

Gnocchi:
3 cups delicata squash
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 ¼ cups all purpose flour
1 egg yolk
1 tsp parmesan
1 tsp kosher salt

Preheat oven to 350°. Cut squash in half and roast (covered to steam) with olive oil and salt until extremely tender (approx.. 35-40 minutes). Pull skin off. Put squash through a food mill (alternatively you can use a potato masher).

Make a well with the flour and add egg yolk, squash, olive oil, parmesan and salt and mix with fork. (Like you would do with pasta dough.) Once the ingredients start to come together you can switch to kneading the dough. Knead for 5-10 mins on a floured surface until dough starts to come together; dough should be slightly sticky. Once dough is complete, rest for at least 2 hours, but preferably overnight.

When dough has rested. Cut into 8-10 portions & roll into ropes. Cut the gnocchi with a knife or a bench scraper into 1” pieces. Drop gnocchi into boiling (salted) water and cook until the dough is floating. Transfer onto a sheet pan, cool down and reserve for plating.

Cranberry Gastrique:
1 ½ cups sugar
½ cup water
1 ½ cups red wine vinegar
3 tbsp sherry wine
1 cup fresh cranberries
2 tsp fresh thyme

Add all ingredients into a pot and turn heat on medium-high; once it reaches a boil you can reduce the temperature to medium. Reduce liquid until thick and syrup-like.

Duck Brine:
2 duck breasts
4 cups water
2 tbsp kosher salt
2 tsp fresh thyme
1 tsp fresh rosemary
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp peppercorns
1 apple, cored and sliced in quarters

Bring brining liquid to a simmer; salt must be dissolved. Cool liquid down before adding duck into brine. Brine for 24 hours. Dry for 12 hours in refrigerator.

Cooking the duck:

Ideally for the duck, you use either a stainless steel or a carbon steel pan; both of these work the best for getting the most ideal sear. You should also equip yourself with some sort of probe thermometer to check the internal temperature of the duck. We will be cooking this duck to medium, but feel free to cook it however you desire.

Gently season the duck (it’s been brined already, so it only needs a little). Let duck sit at room temperature for 15-20 minutes.

In a cold pan place 1 tsp of extra virgin olive oil (or canola oil) and place the duck breast in the pan. Temperature should be medium heat if you have a gas stove, and medium-high if you have electric. You are going to cook the duck 80% of the way skin side down. Duck has very thick skin, so it takes quite a while to render it properly. You can see your progress by looking at the skin side. If you see white fat, you need to keep going.

Once the skin has been crisped up, flip the duck breast over and lower the temperature and cook it until it reaches an internal temperature of 125°-130°F.

Rest duck for 5 minutes; the duck will continue to cook as it rests and will reach a perfect medium temperature. Slice and get ready to plate.

Roasted Squash + Pate

Brioche:
3 ¼ cups bread flour
2 ¼ tsp instant yeast
¼ cup sugar
1 tsp salt
½ cup milk
2 large eggs
1 egg yolk
½ cup unsalted butter (room temperature)

Stand mixer is best used for this recipe.

Warm milk and place with yeast in a container to bloom. 5 mins. The yeast should turn frothy. If it doesn’t, your liquid may have been too hot, or the yeast has died.

Once yeast has bloomed add flour, sugar, salt, eggs and put it to the highest setting on your stand mixer. Knead for 5-10 mins until dough has started to keep it’s shape and is no longer sticky.

Add in your butter a tablespoon at a time while mixing on medium speed. Once all your butter is added knead for another 10 mins on high speed.

Remove dough from kitchen aid, place it in a floured bowl and let proof at room temperature for 1 hr.

Deflate the dough by pressing down on it gently. Reshape the dough and place it back into a floured bowl. Cover the dough and let it rest in your refrigerator overnight.

Remove chilled dough from fridge. Butter and dust 2 loaf pans. Turn the dough out on a floured surface. Deflate the dough. Weigh the dough and divide it into 2 equal portions. Cut with bench scraper or knife. Place each dough into a 9 x 5 pan that has been buttered and floured. Proof in bread pans for 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 325°F. Egg wash the tops of the bread. Bake for 30-45 mins. Remove from oven and let it cool for 5-10 mins. Flip from pan and let cool on a cooling rack until it’s room temperature

Preparing for plating:

Once the brioche has completely cooled. You will cut out a circle with a 2.5” circle cookie cutter. If you have a ramekin on hand, this will also work.

Butter and toast in a pan or in the oven. Ready for plating.

Chicken Liver Pate:
2 cups chicken liver
2 cups milk
soak chicken livers in milk for 24 hrs
2 cups red wine
1 tbsp shallot
1 tsp garlic
¼ cup heavy cream
2 tsp fresh thyme

Reduce wine with a sachet of thyme. Reduce to ½ cup.

Rinse and dry chicken livers. Sauté with shallots and garlic until chicken livers are tender. Add to blender with red wine reduction and heavy cream.

Blend until smooth.

Transfer pate into a small bowl and you are ready for plating

Oregon Grape Jelly:
1 cup Oregon grapes
1 cup water
½ cup sugar

Add grapes, water and sugar to pot and set to medium high When it hits a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for 1 hr. Let jelly cool and transfer into a bowl and you’re ready for plating

Squash + goat cheese mousse

Mousse:
2 cups roasted squash
1 cup goat cheese
1 tbsp cranberry juice
1 sprig thyme
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chives

Cut squash in ½ and scoop out seeds. Brush with olive oil season with salt; roast (covered to steam) in oven at 375° for 30-45 mins (until soft and tender). Remove from oven and pull skin off.

Add goat cheese, roasted squash and all other ingredients into food processer and blend until smooth. Transfer into a bowl and you’re ready for plating.

Parmesan tuille:
1 cup finely shredded parmesan

Lay flat on a baking sheet with parchment paper. 375° F oven for 10 minutes. When removed from the oven cut into circles + let sit for 1 hour to crisp. Set aside and you’re ready to go