From
the Hudson Valley:
Foie Gras: The Great Divide
An
Affair to Remember
By
Kevin Schoeler
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Terrine
of Foie Gras Naturel
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Foie
gras arouses passions on both ends of the spectrum—there
is absolutely nothing middle-of-the road about it. Opinions
are straightforward. People will tell you they love it,
hate it or have never tasted it. In France it's ubiquitous.
In the United States it's a controversy, yet the largest
single producer of highest quality foie gras in the world
is in Ferndale, NY.
How
does one describe this culinary indulgence, beyond its luxurious
texture and captivating flavor? Why not start with Hudson
Valley Foie Gras, and its founder-operators, Izzy Yanay
and Michael Ginor. Ginor tasted foie gras for the first
time twenty years ago at a Middle Eastern grill in Israel.
For him, it was "a perfect paradox of color and texture...
with a crisp exterior and a creamy molten interior."
This experience launched his love affair with the delicacy
and led to a partnership with foie gras expert Yanay.
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Foie
Gras Canapé Kit
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In
1989 Ginor and Yanay established Hudson Valley Foie Gras,
a 200-acre facility in the Catskills that breeds Moulard
ducks and produces their high-quality foie gras and other
gourmet products. Today it is one of only two major producers
of foie gras in the United States. Hudson Valley's specialty
Moulards, a crossbreed of the Muscovy male and Pekin female
duck, produce the exquisite livers that the company supplies
to demanding chefs and gourmands.
Check
out their website where you can swoon over and shop for
whole foie gras as well as mousse, terrine, applewood smoked
duck breast, aged duck breast, legs, thighs, confit—even
duck fat for that decadent roast or for spreading on a hunk
of crusty bread.
Order
up a fresh 1 1/2 pounds. This offering is of the highest
grade, perfect for searing and maybe dressing up with a
little fig preserves or quince confit. Or make it really
easy on yourself and order up one of their Foie Gras Canapé
Kits. You'll get enough luscious foie gras mousse, fig syrup
and petit toasts to make 50 ($37.50) or 100 ($52.50) tempting
hors d'oeuvres.
Visit their website for more information at www.hudsonvalleyfoiegras.com
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Foie
Gras: A Passion
Here's Michael A. Ginor's comprehensive book on "the
ultimate guilty pleasure," as Ruth Reichl put
it in the New York Times.
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