Chicken liver pâté with apple and walnut chutney
This smooth-as-silk, prepare-ahead pâté is a delicious starter with which to wow your guests.
Ingredients
For the chicken liver pâté
- 250g/9oz chilled butter, plus extra for greasing
- 500g/1lb 2oz chicken livers, cleaned
- 1 tbsp fresh marjoram or thyme leaves
- 5 tbsp brandy
- 75g/3oz ghee or clarified butter
- 8 slices white bread, crusts removed
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the apple and walnut chutney
- 200g/7oz light soft brown sugar
- 2 shallots, finely chopped
- 90²µ/3¼´Ç³ú dried apricots, finely chopped
- 300ml/10½fl oz cider vinegar
- 450g/1lb Bramley apples, peeled, cored and roughly chopped
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 pinch ground cloves
- 125²µ/4½´Ç³ú walnut halves, roughly chopped
Method
Preheat the oven to 230C/210C Fan/Gas 8. Grease a terrine or loaf tin with butter then line with 2 layers of cling film, leaving a generous overhang at the edges.
Arrange the chicken livers in a single layer in a large roasting tray, sprinkle over the marjoram or thyme and drizzle over the brandy. Season with salt and pepper, then roast for 4-5 minutes, or until the livers are cooked on the outside but still just pink in the centre.
Transfer the contents of the roasting tray to a food processor and blend to a fine purée with the chilled butter. Season again, to taste.
Spoon the mixture into the prepared terrine and smooth the top with a palette knife. Cover the top with the overhanging cling film. Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes, then top with the clarified butter and chill for a further 2 hours, until set.
Meanwhile, for the chutney, heat the sugar in a large, heavy-based frying pan over a medium heat, until melted and caramelised, then add the shallots and apricots. The mixture will become lumpy, but keep the pan on the heat and continue to cook.
Add the cider vinegar and cook until incorporated into the mixture, then stir in the Bramley apples, cinnamon and cloves and cook for 10 minutes, stirring well, until the apples are tender and the chutney has thickened.
Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the walnuts, then season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Transfer to a sterilised jar and seal, or serve straight away.
Just before serving, make the Melba toast. Preheat the grill to medium, toast the bread slices until pale golden-brown on both sides, then cut each bread slice in half horizontally to create 2 thinner slices, with one toasted side and one untoasted side. Remove any excess dough from the untoasted side - the aim is to make the slices as thin as possible so that every crumb toasts well. Cut the slices into triangles then grill the untoasted sides until golden-brown.
To serve, peel the cling film from the surface of the pâté, upturn the terrine onto a plate, lift off the terrine and peel away the cling film. Slice and serve with the chutney and Melba toast.
