Liver pâté ( turkey )

It is Advent, the Christmas season is upon us and with that all the wonderful culinary treasures this season has to offer us.
Last year I shared with you my recipes for the Turkey, the Goose and the Baked Ham. Now it is time that I let you into the secret of my home made Pâté .
It has been  part of our tradional Christmas Eve Dinner for as long as I can think back and it has become a firm favourite not only with the family but also with friends. I always ask the butcher, where I buy the free range turkey, to make sure that I get the liver, as some do not include the giblets. This request has sometimes been to my benefit as I would find more than one liver in the giblets bag. This of course gives me the chance to make enough Pâté  to give as presents to the nearest and dearest.
When you get the liver make sure that it has not been contaminated by the green gall bladder juice which would make the liver bitter. Should you detect even a little green discoloration, just cut it off and discard it. Make sure to get rid of any veins and sinuses as well. Some recipes call for putting the liver into milk the night before, I do not do that. I prefer to gently sauté the liver in butter, until it is just coked.

If you buy a frozen goose, it usually has all the giblets inside. One goose liver should give you enough to make a small pot of Pâté . Just half the ingredients below. You can of course use chicken liver as well.  The consistency and taste will be a little different. 

Our family prefers a Pâté which does not taste too "livery"! That is the reason for using half liver and half pork meat. I think Pâtés are like stews, casseroles etc. you will find the ratio of the mixture that will suit your taste buds.

I use a normal household food processor to mix all the ingredients, which will take a little time and patience!

Preparation Time: approx. 40 min

Ingredients

250 to 300 g turkey liver (goose or chicken can be used as well)

125 g smoked streaky bacon

250 g minced pork or pork pieces

1/2 medium finely cut onion

2 cloves garlic

250 g butter

1 tsp majoram

Salt and pepper to taste

I measure of good brandy ( cognac)

Method

1. Gently fry the bacon and onions in some of the butter, put aside.

2. Add more butter to the pan and add the liver, gently sauté it until it is just cooked
3. Fry the pork gently in a separate pan

4. Put liver, bacon, onion, pork mince  into a food processor, add the remainder of the butter
5. Add garlic, majoram, brandy, pepper and whisk the ingredients into a smooth Pâté .

Depending on your processor it might take 10 to 15 min before the Pâté  is smooth.

6. Adjust the seasoning .
7. Put Pâté into a small dishes with a lid.
8. Melt some butter and pour it over the Pâté , add some sprigs of fresh Thyme and put it into the
Fridge to set. Once set the Pâté  will stay fresh for a week. At this stage you could freeze it, if you   want to keep some for later.
 

Note: Best eaten with water crackers or really fresh crusty bread. As it is Christmas our usual tipple with the Pâté  is a glass of bubbly!

      

                                               

Happy Christmas , Frohe Weihnachten, Joyeux Noël, Buon Natale, Feliz Natal, God Jul

                          

                                                   Happy Holidays