Duck Carbonara

Difficulty: easy Prep Time: Fifteen Minutes Total Time: Under an hour
2 duck legs
6 slices thick, double-smoked bacon, diced
1/2 cup leek, sliced
1/4 cup shallots, diced
4 cups cooked spaghetti, kept hot
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 cup Parmesan, shredded

For the duck: Salt and pepper the legs, and place them, skin side down, in a cold frying pan (no oil). Turn the burner to medium heat and allow it to render out the fat. (Two legs should produce around 1/4 cup fat. If you need more, add bacon fat.) Once it seems like they will produce no more fat, flip them over to cook the other side. Cook them slowly over low heat until they are cooked through and tender. Flip as necessary to crisp the skin. Remove legs from pan and set aside; keep warm. Fry bacon in duck fat until starting to crisp. Add leek and shallots; cook until translucent. Remove from heat. Add spaghetti and toss to coat in fat. Whisk pepper into the beaten eggs; add egg mixture to pasta and stir quickly to evenly coat the pasta and cook the egg. Add Parmesan and stir to melt. Serve immediately with duck legs and top pasta with additional cheese, if desired. Yield: 2-4 servings.