GOOSE LEGS IN DRIED FRUIT AND NUT SAUCE WITH KNEIDLACH

Makes 8-10 servings.

Marinade:

½ cup honey, silan (date honey) or maple syrup 2 Tbsp. crushed garlic

10 goose legs

Kneidlach:

½ kg. matzah meal

2 eggs

Salt and pepper

About 2.5 cups water

3 Tbsp. canola oil

10 g. baking powder

Some of the fat from the goose legs Sauce:

3 Tbsp. canola oil (add 1 Tbsp. goose fat for taste if desired)

3 large onions, chopped into strips

200 g. dried apricots

200 g. pitted prunes

100 g. dried figs

2 cinnamon sticks

1 star anise

3 cups red wine

1 liter fresh orange juice

½ cup silan (date honey)

100 g. walnuts

½ cup quality BBQ sauce

Salt and pepper to taste

Cover goose legs with honey and garlic marinade and then wrap in plastic and store in the fridge overnight or at least 5 hours.

Place the legs in a baking pan and bake uncovered in an oven that has been preheated to 180° for 30 minutes, until they turn dark brown. Drain off gravy and save in an airtight container in the fridge. Rearrange the legs in the pan.

In a medium bowl, mix all the ingredients for the kneidlach and then cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 1 hour.

Heat oil in a pan and add the onion slices. Sauté over medium flame, stirring every so often until onion turns golden. Add the apricots, prunes, figs, cinnamon and star anise and sauté for 3 minutes. Add the wine and sauté another 2 minutes. Add the orange juice, silan (date honey), nuts and BBQ sauce. Bring to a boil.

Taste and add salt and pepper as desired. Continue cooking until sauce thickens (about 20 minutes). Taste and adjust seasoning.

After the legs have cooled, pour the sauce on top of them and shake the pan so that everything settles. Cover the pan with aluminum foil and cook for 2 hours in an oven that has been preheated to 160°.

While the legs are baking, prepare the kneidlach. With the kneidlach mixture, form balls with a 2 cm. diameter. Pour water into a pot until it’s ¾ full. Add some salt and bring to a boil. Add the kneidlach to the boiling water and cook until they pop up to the surface. Remove them and place them in a bowl of cold water.

Just before serving, take 2-3 tablespoons of the goose fat you saved and heat it in a large pan. Add the kneidlach and sauté with a little salt. Place the kneidlach on a serving platter and then add the goose legs with the sauce on top.