New Orleans Chicken Liver Pate Recipes

Steps:

• Put a large, heavy sauté pan over medium heat, and melt 4 tablespoons of the butter until it begins to foam. Add the shallots, and sauté them until translucent, being careful not to allow them to brown. Add the livers, thyme and Madeira or port, and bring the heat to high. Cook, occasionally stirring the livers around in the pan with a spoon, until the wine has reduced and the livers are lightly browned but still very soft and pink on the inside, approximately 5 minutes.
• Remove the pan from the stove, and put its contents into a blender or food processor, along with the cream and the remaining butter. Purée until smooth, adding a little more cream if necessary. Taste and adjust seasoning, adding salt if necessary.
• Pack the pâté into a glass jar or bowl, then smooth the top with a spatula. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, about two hours or up to five days. Serve with bacon-onion jam and copious amounts of toast.

Steps:

• Saute the onions in 4 tablespoons butter in a skillet over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the chicken livers and cook just until the pink disappears. Remove from heat.
• Puree the mixture in a blender or food processor until smooth. Put the egg yolks through a sieve and add to the liver mixture together with the 4 tablespoons softened butter, cream, Cognac, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Process to mix well.
• Spoon the pate into a decorative bowl, cover and chill for several hours. Sprinkle the top of the pate with the green onions and chives before serving with toast points or crackers.

Steps:

• Place mushrooms in a small bowl; pour the boiling water over. Cover, and let steep until mushrooms are soft, about 15 minutes. Strain through a sieve, reserving liquid. Finely chop mushrooms.
• Meanwhile, in a large saute pan, melt 1 tablespoon butter over medium-high heat. Add half the chicken livers and half the thyme; season with salt and pepper. Saute until livers are lightly browned on the outside and light pink on the inside, 6 to 7 minutes, adding half the garlic after 5 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in 1/2 tablespoon brandy. Transfer mixture and all juices to a large bowl. Repeat with remaining livers.
• Melt 2 tablespoons butter in same pan; add bread cubes and the reserved mushroom liquid, scraping up browned bits from bottom of pan. Combine with liver mixture.
• Working in batches if necessary, transfer to the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Process until mixture is smooth, about 3 minutes. Add lemon juice, and adjust seasoning. Transfer to a 2-cup serving dish.
• Melt remaining tablespoon butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Skim off white foam from surface, and discard. Drizzle melted butter over top of pate, and place in refrigerator, covered, until butter is set, at least 1 hour. Bring to room temperature 1 hour before serving; scrape off butter, if desired, and serve.

Steps:

• In a large skillet, heat 1 1/2 teaspoons butter and 1 tablespoon oil over medium. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, 10 minutes. Add carrot, thyme, and cayenne and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until carrot is tender, 5 minutes. (If mixture is dry or begins to overbrown, add up to 2 tablespoons water.) Transfer mixture to a food processor.
• Return skillet to medium-high and add remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons butter and remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Pat livers dry with paper towels. Season livers with salt and pepper and add to skillet. Cook until golden brown on all sides and cooked through, 6 minutes. Transfer livers to processor and pulse, scraping down sides as needed, until mixture is mostly smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper and let cool. Transfer pate to a small bowl and serve at room temperature with toasts or crackers.

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.