1 1/2 cups boiling water

2 tablespoons olive oil, plus oil to brush a gratin pan

1/2 Vidalia or other sweet onion, minced

2 garlic cloves, minced

8 ounces of cultivated mushrooms

6 medium red-skinned potatoes

2 tomatoes

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1/2 cup red wine

1 cup duck stock or chicken stock

1 tablespoon fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried

1 tablespoon fresh rosemary or 1/2 teaspoon dried

Salt and pepper to taste

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

3 duck breasts, halved and skin removed, pounded lightly to about 1/4 inch thick

Pour boiling water over dried mushrooms and soak for 30 minutes. Drain over cheesecloth, reserving liquid. In a large, heavy-bottomed skillet or saucepan, heat olive oil and add minced onion. Saute until soft, add garlic and saute 1 minute more. Add cultivated and wild mushrooms, raise heat to medium-high and saute for 5 minutes, stirring, until mushrooms release their liquid. Meanwhile, slice potatoes thinly (either peeled or well-washed with skins on) and tomatoes into thick slices and put aside.

Add soy sauce and wine to mushroom mixture and saute 1 minute. Add 1/2 cup mushroom liquid, 1/2 cup chicken stock and seasonings. Oil a gratin pan, then begin to layer the vegetables in it: first one layer of potatoes, then spoon some of the mushroom mixture over those, then tomatoes, then mushroom mixture and repeat. Sprinkle with pepper and pour 1/2 cup of mushroom mixture over the top. Bake in a preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove pan from oven; sprinkle with Parmesan and return to oven for 10 minutes more until cheese melts.

While the gratin is baking, start charcoal fire and heat to medium-hot, with gray ash on the charcoals. Brush duck breasts with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and grill for about 3 minutes each side.

Place on warm serving plates, covered with foil.

Reduce 1/2 cup duck or chicken stock and 1/2 cup reserved wild mushroom liquid over high heat to 2/3 cup. Pour 2 teaspoons over each breast, surround with gratin and garnish with a sprig or two of parsley or thyme. Serves four to six.