Silky Chicken Liver Pate

The Easiest Recipe in the World!  (Using my stick blender)

This  is a great recipe for Chicken Liver Pate.  I was given the original version about 40 years ago and I have gradually stream-lined it  until I reached the present formula.  I can now whack it up while I am making breakfast and serve it at lunch!

Here are five of the reasons it is so good!

1. Children love it.
2. You can keep the ingredients in the freezer and make it at short notice.
3. You can cook it in the microwave or the oven - flavour is not affected if you use the  microwave properly.   
4. Clean-up is minimum if you use a stick (immersion) blender      
5. Children love it.

I am sure you will find more reasons to add to this list, once you have introduced the recipe to your repertoire.

                                                        Chicken Liver Pate

Ingredients.

250gms (8ozs) chicken livers

250gms (8ozs)butter

1 medium brown onion

1-2 pinches of dried mixed herbs

salt and pepper to taste

Method

In a bowl, place the livers and the butter chopped into cubes. Chop the onion and add along with the herbs and seasoning.

Cook in the microwave on med. low for around 15-20 mins, stirring every 5 minutes.

If you cook in the oven, set at a medium heat (350degrees) and cook until livers are as above and the onions are tender.  

Cool the mixture, then blend until smooth and pour into small bowls for serving. Chill until set.

   


           Notes

• Rule of thumb - always match the quantities of livers and butter.  e.g. 10ozs liver - 10ozs butter.  If you do not, the end product will not be properly balanced.  It does not matter what the quantities are, you can make little or lots.  Adjust the amount of onion, herbs and seasoning as necessary.
• You can add extra flavours if you wish, brandy or port, for example.
• You need to microwave at a low heat as you risk having the livers cooked before the onions if your setting is too high.  The livers should be faintly pink and moist.               
• If you use a blender (I do not think a food processor produces the silky texture required) be prepared to blend in batches and mix the batches together in another large bowl before pouring into smaller containers. (fuss, fuss, fuss!)
•  Because it freezes well, I always make a little extra to freeze in small pots for when we are without extra family! 

As I said - Easy, Easy, Easy!

Garnish with bay leaves and juniper berries.

Buying a New Toy - Stick Blenders

What do you want from your stick blender?  

Generally, it would seem that most users want it to be:

• ·         easy to clean
• ·         robust - metal rather than plastic
• ·         easy to handle - not too heavy or awkward
• ·         useful in a variety of situations,  from mixing smoothies with great chunks of ice to whipping delicate egg-whites

What can you expect from your stick blender?  Generally, it would seem they are:

• ·         mostly easy to clean
• ·         robust to a greater or lesser degree
• ·         most are easy to handle
• ·         most are useful in a variety of situations

So - what's the problem, then?

 

Manufacturing faults aside,  consider this.  It is truly not rational to buy a cheap, plastic blender and then expect it to crush ice ad infinitum.  It is not logical to expect a $30 blender to perform at peak capacity, day after day for 10 or 12 years.  No one should expect inexpensive plastic to stand up to hours of extremely hot water and the chemicals used in a dish-washer.  It is wonderful if it happens, but it must be considered a bonus.   Kitchen tools need to be treated with respect and a  little bit of TLC will make all the difference to their life expectancy - after all, we do get  cars serviced, don't we?

As I see it, we "pays our money and we takes our choice", as the old saying goes.  If we spend the dollars up front, we may expect to be the owners of a robust and rugged machine which, with care and regular service,  will provide us with years of use.  (For example, replacing dull blades helps to reduce strain on the motor.)    

If we cannot afford, or do not want to go for the best, we take a punt, buy a cheaper model and still treat it well.  Give it respect, look after it and you are likely to enjoy  many  years of service,  albeit without all the whistles and bells. Then, when it fails, you shrug, buy another one and move on.  A word of warning here, often the price of a cheap blender may mean that it is more expensive to claim under-warranty repair or replacement than it is to just go out and buy a new one!

Resist the temptation to throw your stick blender at the cat, to leave it where the gas flame can gently lick it,  or to let it languish in the soup of chemicals we call dish-wash powder and you may be surprised with the result.

Before you decide on which model to buy, do make a list of all the things you want  your stick blender to do,  choose one that has a realistic chance of meeting your demands and do not demand that it performs beyond its capabilities.