Confit Of Duck Breast And Sausage Cassoulet - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 lb great northern bean, cooked (see intro)
4 -5 boned duck breasts (2 - 2 1/2 lbs total)
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 lb thick sliced bacon, chopped
2 onions, chopped
5 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups low sodium chicken broth
3/4 cup dry red wine (Beaujolais Nouveau or Zinfandel)
1 tomatoes, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh thyme
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 bay leaf
1/2 lb sausage, sliced 1/2 in thick

Preparation

Drain cooked beans and pour into an electric slow cooker (4 1/2 qt or larger).
Remove skin from duck breasts. Place breasts on a bowl and add salt and sugar. Let sit 30 minutes, refrigerated. Rinse breasts well under running water and cut meat into 1 in chunks.
In a large skillet, brown bacon until crisp. Discard all but 1 tbs fat from skillet. Add onions and garlic to bacon and stir until onion begins to brown. Add broth and wine, bring to a boil, scraping browned bits from bottom of skillet.
Pour broth mixture into slow cooker with the beans. Add the rest of the ingredients and place duck pieces on top.Cover pot and cook for 5-6 hours.
Uncover and add the sausage slices. Let cook for 10-15 minutes.
Serve hot.