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| Food for Thought | |
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| PEAR, PISTACHIO AND CHICKEN LIVER PATE | |
| 1 lb chicken livers 1 lb softened cream cheese 1 finely chopped Bosc pear 1 finely chopped medium onion 2 tbsp dried black currants (or raisins) 1/4 cup pear brandy |
2 tbsp butter +
1 tbsp olive oil for onion/pear mix 1 tbsp butter + 1 tbsp olive oil for livers 2 minced garlic cloves 1 tsp salt 1/4 tsp dried thyme 1/8 tsp dried allspice 1/8 tsp white pepper 2 tbsp coarsely chopped pistachios |
| 1 | Soak the currants (or raisins) in pear brandy for 4- 24 hours. |
| 2 | In butter and olive oil, sauté the onion and pear till soft. Add the minced garlic cloves and cook a further minute. Pour this mixture into a food processor and puree till smooth. |
| 3 | Add the softened cream cheese cut into pieces, and the salt, thyme, allspice, and white pepper. |
| 4 | In the same skillet, sauté the chicken livers in butter and oil until the livers are cooked but still pink in the center. Strain the pear brandy from the currants (or raisins) and add to the livers. Light the brandy with a long matchstick and when burned out add the liver mix to the cream cheese mixture and blend all till smooth. |
| 5 | Carefully fold in the currants (or raisins) and the pistachios. |
| 6 | Pour into a 4-cup container and chill at least four hours. |
| 7 | Decorate with chopped parsley and more pistachios - or ad lib. |
| 8 | This recipe can be doubled and poured into an 8-cup spring form pan. It can be prepared up to three days ahead of serving. |
| (Adapted from the The California Cook, 1994 ) | |
| Served at the joint party for Winnie's 80th, given by the LWV, Friends of Sherwood Island and the Garden Club on April 16, 2003. | |