Pate makes a very nice appetizer for a special dinner party or holiday celebration. This Pate recipe features our "elderberry twist" on a recipe first published in Martha Stewart Living magazine. For best results, make one day ahead and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
- 3/4 pound chicken livers, rinsed and patted dry
- 1/2 pound cremini mushrooms, sliced
- 1/3 cup coarsely chopped shallots
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 2 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
- 1/3 cup dry white wine
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
- 3/4 cup Elderberry Extract, chilled
- Toasted baguette slices or crackers, for serving
Directions
- Line a 6-inch square pan, a 9-by-5- inch loaf pan, or two 5-by-2- inch loaf pans with plastic wrap and set aside. Melt 1/4 cup butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add livers, shallots, garlic and cayenne pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally until livers are cooked through, about 5 minutes. Stir in 1 teaspoon salt, the wine, and the thyme. Reduce heat to low. Cover and cook until liquid has reduced and the mushrooms are very soft, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.
- Transfer the liver mixture to a food processor. Add the remaining 3/4 cup butter and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and process until smooth and completely blended. Transfer to the prepared pan(s) and refrigerate until cool.
- Place 3 tablespoons of Elderberry Extract in a bowl and sprinkle the gelatin over the surface of the juice. Let stand until softened, about 5 minutes. Heat the remaining Elderberry Extract until warm and add to the gelatin mixture. Stir until the gelatin is well dissolved. Prepare an ice water bath in a bowl large enough to hold the bowl containing the Elderberry Extract-gelatin mixture. Place the bowl containing the Elderberry Extract-gelatin mixture in the ice water bath and let the juice cool to room temperature, stirring. Slowly pour the Elderberry Extract-gelatin mixture over the pate. Cover with plastic wrap (don't let wrap come into contact with the gelee) and return the pate to the refrigerator. Refrigerate until firm, about 3 hours or overnight.
- Just prior to serving, remove plastic wrap cover. Gently pull up on the plastic wrap lining the pan(s) to un-mold and place the pate on a decorative plate. Serve with toasted baguette slices or crackers.