Some Grandmas Make Chopped Liver, I prefer Liver Pate ;)

The New York Times' Wednesday Dining section often inspires me in new cooking directions mid-week. Last week, Mark Bittman waxed nostalgic about his grandmother's chopped liver with schmaltz and his first foray into making the tremendously non-kosher creamy French chicken liver pate. His epistle sent me digging through my old recipes for the great kosher liver pate that I used to make years ago before I felt too cholesterol guilty to make it.

Pour a glass of wine, spread this creamy pate on some French bread , turn on some music and you’ll feel like you’re on the best vacation.

Chicken Liver Pate M Yield: 2 cups

Prep time: 20 min. + 3 hours chilling time

Ingredients

1 pound chicken livers-kashered*

1 large onion- peeled and chopped

6 tablespoons pareve margarine

¼ teaspoon ground allspice

½ teaspoon ground black pepper

Salt to taste

2 tablespoons cognac

Equipment

Skillet

Food processor

Directions

1. Rinse all salt off livers and pat them dry. Cut off any pieces of the livers that were charred in the kashering process.
2. Melt 4 tablespoons margarine in skillet and sauté onions until they are very soft. Add livers and sauté over relatively high heat so that the livers absorb some of the onion flavor and cook a bit more but still remain pink on the inside.
3. Pour livers, onions and all juices from skillet into food processor. Add remaining margarine, cognac and spices. Process until mixture is creamy and smooth. Allow it to cool off a bit before tasting- then adjust spices. Add a little salt if you need to. I find the cognac so flavorful that no extra salt is needed.
4. Pour pate into a serving crock or bowl and chill for three hours. Serve with French bread and crackers. Bowls of gherkins and olives are a nice addition to this very elegant hors d’oeuvre.

• To Kasher livers: Spread livers out on foil. Sprinkle generously with kosher salt. Put under top shelf of broiler for a few minutes or until salt has set. Remove livers, turn over , salt on the other side and return to broiler for a few minutes longer. Remove livers from broiler, rinse well and proceed with recipe. Discard foil and all juices that have gathered.