Kitchen Conundrum

  • Home
  • About
  • Eat
    • Appetizers
    • Bread
    • Breakfast & Brunch
    • Desserts
    • Fish
    • Meats
    • Pasta
    • Poultry
    • Side Dishes
    • Sauces, Dressings and Condiments
    • Soup and Stews
    • Vegetables
  • Drink
    • Beer
    • Cocktails
    • Wine
  • Recipe Index
  • Travel
    • NYC/Metro
    • Cambodia
    • England
    • France
    • Greece
    • Italy
    • Spain
    • Vietnam
  • Kitchen Sink
    • Classes
    • Contests
    • Cookbooks
    • Cook The Book Fridays- My Paris Kitchen
    • French Fridays with Dorie
    • Kitchen Gear & Gadgets

Chicken Liver Gâteaux with Pickled Onions- French Fridays with Dorie

January 17, 2013 by Renee

It’s time for French Fridays with Dorie!

I’m not going to lie. I was really apprehensive about this recipe. Like, horrified and a bit disgusted actually. Don’t get me wrong, I love pâté, rillettes and foie gras.  But usually,  someone else has prepared it before I enjoyed it. I feel as though some things should be left to the professionals (or less queasy cooks!)- and strange parts with gooey, slimy consistencies fit that bill. I am more than happy to savor pâté with a great bottle of wine after it’s been prepared- pre-packaged, bought at the market, removed from it’s container and plated. Voilà! That, I can handle!

Some things I just don’t want to know how they transformed into something edible.

But, because I never (well almost never) turn down a challenge, I dove into the world of offal- well, not really dove, but rather, waded into the shallow end.  Yes, liver is considered an offal, right along with sweetbreads and calves brain. (shudder!)

Dorie’s chicken liver gateaux with pickled onions only seems intimidating. It is actually really simple to make.

The thinly sliced pickled onions can be used with the pâté or to garnish a salad separately.

Chicken Liver Gateaux with Pickled Onions

 

I thought that the spices that were needed for the pickling liquid were on the meek side so I added more cloves and black pepper. This seemed to do the trick. The pickled onions are quite tangy yet flavorful.

While the onions simmered, the liver was prepared. I could not muster enough strength and courage vigor to do the cleaning, so Ari graciously de-veined and de-greened them for me. He remarked as his hands were covered in goo, “I can do this, but I can’t watch Grey’s Anatomy”.  Go figure.

Chicken Liver Gateaux with Pickled Onions

 

This recipe could not have been easier. Whiz everything up in the food processor and transfer to ramekins for baking in a nice, hot water bath.

Chicken Liver Gateaux with Pickled Onions

 

After three quarters of an hour, they are done. Just plate and serve.

20130118-IMG_7678-2

 

Despite my initial hesitation at making this, I took a bite and it was… DELICIOUS!  Wow! I was so surprised! Happy that it worked out so well! I would gladly make this again for a dinner party or special occasion. The best part is, it’s a very inexpensive dish that looks and tastes expensive. I was able to purchase almost 2lbs of fresh livers for just over $2! A bargain!

So, I made the offal and it wasn’t awful! (lol) I may foray into the deep end soon.

Unfortunately, I cannot share the recipe- but you can (and should!) buy the book and cook along with us. It’s great fun! The January recipes are posted on the FFWD site.

Buy the book:

greenspan

frenchfridayswithdorie16

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)

Related

Filed Under: Eat, Cookbooks, French Fridays with Dorie, Poultry Tagged With: Chicken Livers, Cookbook, Dorie Greenspan, French Fridays with Dorie, Pickled Onions, chicken, onions

« Long and Slow Apples- French Fridays with Dorie
Spatchcocked Roasted Chicken with Lemons »

Comments

  1. Andrea says

    January 18, 2013 at 11:17 am

    Renee, your plate with the Chicken Liver Gâteau and Pickeld Onions certainly looks very elegant – a truly delicious looking presentation. And it is nice to see and read that you liked the way this wonderful French dish turned out.
    Have a good week!

  2. Amy says

    January 18, 2013 at 4:24 pm

    Nice write up! You are so brave — thrilled you found it delicious. (And a bit envious you could make it — no livers here unless you kill your own chickens, it seems…)

  3. Sara says

    January 19, 2013 at 8:31 am

    Isn’t it amazing how cheap chicken livers are when you can turn them into such an elegant dish? I guess it’s because they get such a bad rap, which is just too bad. Your gateau looks gorgeous!

  4. Trevor Sis. Boom. says

    January 19, 2013 at 9:26 am

    I was sad not to get to this one this week as the “challenging” ones usually turn out to be my favorites. After reading your post here I have made a note to double the onions so that I can upgrade salads all week…once I get to this one, I mean…’cause I’m gonna do it. Promise!

  5. Tricia S. says

    January 19, 2013 at 9:56 am

    I am with you on the squeamish part of the prep. I enjoy a pate out of my kitchen but prefer not to know the details. Luckily you have Ari and I have Nana next door who kept us from the yucky part 🙂 The aroma was lovely when cooked and the taste was more pleasant than I would have guessed. My hubby and sons were big fans. Not that I will be making it again- I was brave for FFWD but I am not a fan of innards and such. They can travel next door to Nana’s for that stuff……

  6. Lola says

    January 19, 2013 at 10:39 am

    I like liver and I like paté but the sight of raw liver being processed in the food processor was a bit off putting! That being said the final product was good, wasn’t it? I like yours with the rosemary sprig!

  7. Betsy says

    January 19, 2013 at 2:13 pm

    I enjoyed this as well. I agree that there weren’t enough spices in the pickled onions. You were smarter than I was and added more. I’ll have to do that next time around. Nice job!

  8. Michael Barnes says

    January 19, 2013 at 3:21 pm

    Congratulations! Simple, attractive and inexpensive and it sounds devine too! I’m glad you spiced up the onions! I’d love to try it one day.

  9. Cher says

    January 19, 2013 at 4:23 pm

    Beautifully done! This dish seems to have been a pleasant surprise for many people.

  10. Teresa says

    January 19, 2013 at 10:20 pm

    Nice presentation! I enjoyed the pickled onions, but wish I’d amped up the spices, too.

  11. Maggie says

    January 21, 2013 at 4:39 pm

    Great job with this one! I don’t think I’ve ever eaten a pate before so I don’t know how I feel about them but I was not brave enough to try this. De-veining and De-greening sounded terrible….

  12. Elaine says

    January 22, 2013 at 7:07 pm

    I’m glad you enjoyed it. Very nice presentation!

  13. Liz says

    January 23, 2013 at 1:50 pm

    I loved this one, too, but I think I’d rather be served it at a fancy restaurant than make it again 🙂

  14. Julie says

    January 23, 2013 at 1:55 pm

    Your narrative is brilliant.

  15. kitchen therapy says

    January 24, 2013 at 4:30 am

    I really like your pics!
    I didn’t make this one, I chose to catch up on a recipe I missed.
    Sounds like it was a winner for you!

  16. Alice says

    January 24, 2013 at 5:04 pm

    WOW, your livers were expensive compared to mine – I paid half of what you did for the same amount – although in comparison to regular meats, liver is certainly a money-saver! 🙂 Love your photos, it looks like you had a great time with it!

Categories

Archives

kitchconundrum

It’s a two cocktail kind of night. Mojito and G& It’s a two cocktail kind of night. Mojito and G&T. #rum #sevenupmojito #hendricks #gin #cocktail #adultbeverage #roevwade #womensrights #voteblue
Britakakku. A Finnish summer cake made with layers Britakakku. A Finnish summer cake made with layers of cake, meringue, a whipped yogurt cream and fresh berries. It may look a mess but it’s quite tasty! Only two layers here but I’ve seen them quite tall! #britakakku #finnish #finnishfood #pastry #berries #summerfruit #summerdessert #dessert #summer #cake
Mint chip ice cream with fresh mint from the garde Mint chip ice cream with fresh mint from the garden. Cool and refreshing. One of the best recipes from David Lebovitz’s A Perfect Scoop. #cookthebook #cookbook #icecream #homemadeicecream #gardening #herbgarden #mint #chocolatechip #davidlebovitz #recipe
First flowers of the season! And a few vegetables First flowers of the season! And a few vegetables are here too! I was going to prune the crazy overgrown rosebush on the arch but there are robins nesting in it so we’ve let it go wild. Will have to wait to cut it back until after the summer. We don’t mind and they have a safe spot to just be. Last year they built their nest in the grape vines. We feel honored to watch Mr & Mrs fly back and forth all day with food or twigs. They are very busy! #gardening #backyardgarden #growyourownfood #robin #nest #robinsnest
We finished working in the backyard today and cele We finished working in the backyard today and celebrated a power washed deck and cleaned out boxes primed for veggies and flowers with a bottle of rosé. It’s apéro season in the garden! #apero #wine #rosé  #gardening #garden #flowers #vegetablegarden #growyourownfood
A really nice Asian supermarket opened nearby so w A really nice Asian supermarket opened nearby so we restocked our pantry. We met a nice couple there who told us which brands they liked best- love their personal recommendations! Super nice of them! 

We also said goodbye to our old, burnt and wonky bamboo steamer. It served us well but it’s time for a new one. #ranch99 
#asiancooking #asiangrocery #grocery #groceryhaul
Lunch today was @ottolenghi ‘s Cauliflower Cake Lunch today was @ottolenghi ‘s Cauliflower Cake from #PlentyMore #Cookbook It was really quite good. Though we felt it needed a little something…more. It’s a versatile recipe so next time we will add garlic, cumin, or coriander and maybe switch up the cheeses and vegetables. I can see it with feta and spinach or asparagus even,  or even broccoli and a good cheddar. That is the magic of a good base recipe. You can make it however you want! Just have fun with it! #greatrecipes #cookthebooks #ottolenghi #cooking #lunch #eatyourveggies
A bit of spring popped out this week. Hopefully, w A bit of spring popped out this week. Hopefully, warm weather will come and stay. It’s been cold and raining so much (I guess that’s good and needed) so I’ve not been outside much. I need to rake the leaves! But it’s lovely to see some color come through! Soon the tulips will bloom and that also means its time to plant the vegetable garden. Summer really is on the way! #spring #flowers #flowergarden #vegetablegarden #gardening #gardeningcalendar
Taco Thursday’s is a thing right? Well, we can e Taco Thursday’s is a thing right? Well, we can eat tacos any time! Leftover grilled chicken put to good use. #tacothursday #tacotuesday #dinner #corntortillas #yum
Who wants some ooey gooey cheesy melty spinach art Who wants some ooey gooey cheesy melty spinach artichoke dip? It was really good and we have sooo much leftover! Going to be eating it with grilled chicken, pasta and bread for the next week or so. #toomuch #artichokes #spinach #cheese #dip #appetizers #artichokedip
Sunday afternoon snacks. Warm pretzels with cheese Sunday afternoon snacks. Warm pretzels with cheese sauce. #pretzels #snack #cheesesauce #gouda #cheddar #tvsnack #afternoonsnack
Bœuf Bourguignon for dinner today. With mashed po Bœuf Bourguignon for dinner today. With mashed potatoes of course! It’s s project but so worth it. #dinner #beef #boeufbourguignon #frenchcooking
Not much to look at but so tasty! I’ve been want Not much to look at but so tasty! I’ve been wanting to make choucroute garnie since returning from Strasbourg, where I had it a lot. Good sausages are hard to find but a slightly smoky kielbasa, thick cut bacon and uncured hotdogs did the trick. Also, the sauerkraut with apples and white wine had just enough sweet and tang. This is a really easy but absolutely delicious dish. #choucroute #choucroutegarnie #alsace #sauerkraut #strasbourg #dinner #onepotmeal
This is a seriously elevated cauliflower gratin. M This is a seriously elevated cauliflower gratin. Made with an olive oil béchamel, garlic and feta cheese. So delicious and comforting on this cold winter day. Recipe by @aglaiakremezi  #cauliflower #cauliflowergratin #vegetarian #dairy #sidedish #sogood
Some days you just need to make chocolate mousse a Some days you just need to make chocolate mousse and use so many bowls in the process. I think I’ll have two please. (They’re small!) #chocolate #chocolatemousse #mousse #dessert #madefromscratch #delish #chocoholic #darkchocolate
Mushroom Barley Soup and Netflix is perfect for st Mushroom Barley Soup and Netflix is perfect for staying cozy today while there’s a blizzard outside. Stay safe everyone! #lunch #soup #mushroombarleysoup #blizzard #stayinside #fozen
Before the big girl headed back to college this we Before the big girl headed back to college this weekend, we decided to honor her time in Strasbourg by making a tarte flambée. I had bought a wheel of Munster in Colmar and it travelled home with us. Unfortunately, it was a bit overripe when we opened it so we ended up using Comté instead. It was still very tasty. Just wish we had the same wood fired crust they have there. #tarteflambee #strasbourg #colmar #france #munster #cheese #comte
2021 is a wrap! We made it! What a blur this year 2021 is a wrap! We made it! What a blur this year was. But gardening, renovating, a couple of trips and a lot of cooking and eating good things helped get us through. Thanks to you too for being a part of this year! May we all be blessed with another year- healthy, happy and well fed!  #topnine #top9of2021 #diy #2021 #newyears #goodtidings #yearinreview2021 #yearinreview
Load More... Follow on Instagram

© Copyright 2017 Kitchen Conundrum · Privacy Policy & Disclosures · All Rights Reserved ·

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.