Boy was my lunch delicious today. So good that I thought the recipe deserved getting shared with the world for others to enjoy. Looks like Nutella doesn't it? Well it's chicken liver pâté.
Pâté is one of those things that until a few years ago, I was convinced had to be purchased in order to be enjoyed.
Well, I found that it is not true. The recipe is so simple, affordable and quick to make that it is a perfect picnic dish and cocktail appetizer.
Ingredients
Please refer below for more information on the origin of my ingredients
1 stick butter
1 lb. chicken liver
Couple rosemary sprigs
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup white wine or 2 tbsp. brandy (preferred)
Salt and pepper
Melt a 1/4 stick of butter in a large skillet
Add chicken livers and herbs and saute until thoroughly cooked (pink inside - 5 minutes)
Add a splash of white wine or brandy to deglaze
Compost bay leaf, set aside rosemary sprigs, and blend chicken livers with the remaining butter
and 3 tbsp wine or 1 tbsp brandy.
Season to taste, garnish with the rosemary sprig and voila!
Enjoy with baguette and cornichon (optional: a green salad).
How Zero Waste are my ingredients?
Butter: As mentioned before, I stopped making butter because of cost, and butter remains the only food that we purchase in disposable packaging. The box goes into the recycling; the wrappers get washed and added to my collection for a planned art piece. Looking at three years worth of wrappers... I realize how important butter is to this family ;)
Chicken liver: The meat counter at Whole Foods put them in my jar. Chicken liver is a discard of the meat industry and am happy to take it off its hands for a super low price! (I bought two pounds that day, as seen in picture above)
Rosemary: As mentioned before, we do not have a vegetable garden due to the nature of our property (we are perched on an oak-covered hill). We do grow a few things on our deck, but not rosemary. I consider the wild my vegetable garden. So when I need rosemary, I take the dog for a walk and forage.
Bay leaf: California bay trees grow like weeds in our neck of the woods. They have even become invasive. Since they carry the sudden oak death disease, we have cut the ones that keep sprouting on our property. When I need a leaf for cooking, I pick the neighbour's branch that leans over our property (convenient foraging).
White wine: I have to say this recipe is good made with white wine, but fantastic made with brandy. I made this batch of pâté using wine from a local winery, Le Neebia, that refills our bottles.
Salt and pepper: I purchased fine sea salt and whole peppercorn from the bulk bins at the grocery store, using my cloth bags.
Cornichons: I fill a small jar at the olive bar of the grocery store.
What are you eating for lunch?
