French Chopped Liver Pâté Food

LIVER PâTé

Steps:

• Grind the pork: Grind the pork through a meat grinder several times on a fine setting.
• Process diced livers, cognac, Madeira, garlic, parsley, shallots, spices in a food processor: Place in a blender cognac or brandy, Madeira or sherry, garlic, parsley, shallot or onion, ginger, clove, cinnamon, nutmeg. Add diced livers and blend a cupful at a time. Season with salt and pepper, adding a dash of Tabasco or cayenne.
• Mix the ground pork with the blended liver
• Layer a terrine dish with bacon and pate mixture: Line a 4x8-inch terrine with strips of bacon, fill with mixture, and cover with bacon.
• Place terrine in a water bath: Place the terrine in a larger baking dish and fill the larger dish with water up to the halfway point on the side of the pâté dish. This "water bath" will help the pâté retain moisture and make for a smoother consistency in the texture.
• Bake: Bake uncovered in a moderate oven, 350 degrees F, for about 1 1/2 hours.
• Cool under a weight: Cool the pate under a weight so that it will become firm and fine-textured. To do this, lay a piece of waxed paper or aluminum foil over the pâté and set on top of the entire surface a board weighted with a heavy object. Chill in the refrigerator for several hours. Serve: At serving time bring the terrine to the table, slice, and serve with crusty French bread or rolls and a glass of wine. Also good with lettuce and tomatoes. Variation: Use chicken livers, pork, and sausage meat in equal quantities. See my second recipe for pâté maison . From Poppy Cannon's Eating European , 1961.

CREAMY CHICKEN LIVER PâTé

Steps:

• In a spice grinder or clean coffee grinder, combine peppercorns, allspice, clove and coriander seeds; grind until fine and set aside.
• Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a skillet over medium-high heat; when foam subsides, add onion and cook until softened, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add livers to pan and sprinkle with salt; cook livers on one side until they begin to brown, about 2 minutes, then flip them and cook the other side. Be sure to keep heat relatively high so that the outside of livers sears and inside stays pink.
• Put onion, livers and their buttery juices into a food processor or blender with remaining butter, the cream, spices and brandy. Purée mixture until it is smooth; taste and adjust seasoning.
• Put pâté in a terrine or bowl, smooth top and put in refrigerator for 2 to 3 hours or until fully set. Serve pâté with bread or crackers.

FRENCH CHOPPED LIVER PâTé

Steps:

• Preheat the broiler. Broil the livers on a rack 4 inches from the heat for about 1 1/2 minutes on each side, or until there is no more blood. Drain the livers, and lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees.
• Heat the chicken fat or oil in a sauté pan, and sauté the onion or shallots slowly for 10 to 15 minutes, or until very soft and lightly colored. Add the livers, and cook until still lightly pink inside, just a minute or two.
• Place the livers, onion or shallots, eggs, and Cognac or port in a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. Process until smooth.
• Decorate the bottom of a 9-inch loaf pan with the bay leaves, placed shiny side down. Spoon the liver mixture on top of them, tapping gently to get rid of any air bubbles. Set the pan into a bain-marie, and bake for 20 minutes. Cool, then unmold. Serve with rye bread.

FRENCH CHOPPED CHICKEN LIVER PATE

Steps:

• Heat chicken fat or vegetable oil in sauté pan over medium heat for 1 minute, and sauté onion in it 20 to 25 minutes, or until very soft and lightly golden. add uncooked liver, and cook until just pink inside, a few minutes.
• Place onions and liver in food processor with eggs, brandy and starch, and process until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Arrange bay leaves shiny side down in loaf pan, and spoon liver mixture on top, pressing gently with spoon to get rid of any air bubbles. Set pan in a larger pan two-thirds filled with warm water, and bake 20 minutes. Cool, and unmold. Serve with rye bread.

LIVER PATE

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan, combine water, chicken livers, and sliced onion. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and cover. Simmer for about 20 minutes, or until liver is cooked and tender. Remove from heat, drain, and discard onions. Also remove and discard any hard portions of the liver.
• Place cooked livers in a blender or food processor, and process until smooth. Add chopped onion, sherry, butter or margarine, salt, black pepper, and mace; pulse to blend. With hands lightly greased, form pate mixture into a mound, and place on a serving platter. Chill for 1 hour before serving.

CHOPPED LIVER PATE

Steps:

• The most important part of cooking with an iron skillet is to heat the pan first without any fat inside. When it is really hot, add your chicken fat ) shmaltz. Turn down the heat to simmer. I play with the gas burner while cooking, up and down according to the heat in the pan. If you notice the oil burning, turn down the heat. I immediately add the chopped onions after I added the oil. Keep stirring with a wooden spoon. The onions will turn translucent. If there is not enough shmaltz oil in the pan add a little vegtable oil and continue cooking the onions. Try not to overcook the onions. Take them out before they turn brown. While this is going on, rinse the livers under cold water and drain. After the onions are removed from the pan clean the pan with a slotted spoon of any dark pieces of onion. Then add a little more shmalltz to the pan and some livers. Do not crowd the pan. Cook livers one pan at a time. I constantly keep turning the livers. I cut into the liver to see if it is done. It should be cooked all the way thru just not burned. Next, combine the livers and the onions in a bowl. In the cuisinart fitted with the blade on the bottom place a small amount of the ingredients and pulse until you like the consistancy. I like it soft like a pate. Do this until all of the liver and onions are finely mashed. I then combine the pate with the hand chopped onions. Add salt and pepper to taste. I like the pate to be slightly more peppery. It looks nice to garnish with the extra chopped raw onions and if you like, some chopped hard boiled eggs. During passover, you can eat this with matzah or serve with crackers. Place in refrigerator immediately after preparation for at least a few hours in a sealed container. I enjoy the liver after it is removed from the frig for 20 minute Happy Cooking!

SUR LE GRIL CHOPPED CALF LIVER PATE

Steps:

• With a sharp knife, remove the tough outer membranes from liver.
• In a heavy skillet, heat oil and add chopped onions.
• Cook over medium high heat until translucent and golden brown.
• Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
• Add butter to skillet.
• Heat until melted.
• Add liver pieces.
• Over medium heat, fry liver until just done - 3 minutes on each side.
• Alternatively, liver can be brushed with butter and broiled.
• To test for doneness, cut a piece from liver slice.
• If still pink, continue cooking for 30 - 60 seconds.
• Overcooking causes the liver to be dry and tough.
• For finely mashed egg that disappears in the liver mixture, force egg through a wire strainer.
• For best results, separate the hard cooked whites from yolks and sieve them separately.
• Set aside.
• Fit meat grinder with a medium blade and place cooked liver and cooked onions in the grinder.
• Grind, then regrind the ground mixture.
• In a medium mixing bowl, combine the twice ground meat and onions mixture with the sieved eggs.
• Add salt and pepper.
• Taste and adjust seasoning.
• If desired, add a few drops of commercial gravy browning liquid to heighten color.
• Refrigerate for 24 hours before serving.
• Serve with slices of tomato, cucumber and dark rye bread.