Duck with risotto

I love duck and this duck was really no exception.  I tried making duck once at home and it wasn't really that good, but this one definitely lived up to the expectations.  I was a little hesitant about it but really glad I spent the extra money and went for it.

What I liked - The duck was really tender and perfectly cooked.  The sauce for the duck was nice and sweet and salty (one of my favorite combos).  There also was a lot of duck, this recipe would easily feed 3 people (but really you will not want to share any of your duck with a third person).

What I didn't like - The risotto, it was ok (not the best though) but I honestly didn't feel like it paired well with the sweet salty duck, maybe like an asian coconut rice would have worked better, or something with a little sweetness to it as well.  I think I liked the risotto better also before I put the mushrooms in (and I do like mushrooms).  Also it would have been nicer if the duck skin was crispy, you crisp it up at the begining but then add sauce which I think de-crisped it (ok I know its not a word), but even though it wasn't crisp the duck was still delicious.

My modifications - I used a lower heat to simmer the risotto as I thought that simmering on medium high heat wasn't right, but then the risotto took longer then the 25 min directed so maybe I should have used med high heat.  I pre-roasted the mushrooms earlier in the day. 

Overall 4 stars and that was really just because the duck was so good.  If the risotto had been better (or something else) this would be 5 stars.