You can pair chicken liver crostini with a classic Tuscan red wine of medium body, such as a Rosso di Montepulciano; Cabernet Sauvignon or a South Tyrolean Cabernet-Merlot would also be excellent choices.
Chicken liver crostini
This is a simplified version of the famous Sienese crostini. As with the Tuscan recipe, crostini made only with chicken livers are perfect as both hors d’oeuvres and appetisers.
Chef Danilo Angè
Difficulty: easy
Method: 35
Cooking: 25
Chef Danilo Angè
Difficulty: easy
Method: 35
Cooking: 25
Method
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01 / Prepare the livers, capers, and butter
Remove excess fat from livers
Remove any residual bile, and especially any parts that look green or yellow
Wash livers thoroughly and allow to drain
Desalinate capers in water
Work butter into a thick cream with a spatula
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02 / Cook the livers
Chop onion
Sweat onion in a saucepan with extra virgin olive oil, bay leaf, and sage
Keep heat on low so as not to burn onion
Once onion is soft and translucent, add livers
Turn up heat and let brown for around two minutes
Add marsala wine and allow to evaporate, stirring livers frequently
Add anchovies, drained of oil
Add desalinated capers
Add a grind of pepper
Let cook for 20 minutes
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03 / Finish the pâté
Remove bay leaf and sage
Blend livers
Transfer to a bowl
Add softened butter
Mix until smooth
Taste and adjust salt and pepper
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04 / Assemble the crostini
Slice loaf of bread
Toast bread slices in the oven at 190 °C or on a grill until golden
Spread liver pâté on toasted bread slices and serve
Wine pairing
You can arrange to prepare crostini in advance, even making the pâté a few hours beforehand; add the softened butter at the last moment to get that pleasant, creamy consistency.
Remove the butter from the refrigerator a few hours in advance, you will be able to cream it more easily.
Cleaning the livers is the most important step and must be executed with care: Any remainder of the bile sack will leave an unpleasantly bitter taste that will ruin your crostini!
Sweat the onion over low heat, taking care not to burn it; the result is a sweet and delicate flavour, which balances the taste of the livers.
Do not forget to desalinate the capers thoroughly!
Both capers and anchovies are very salty; only add salt to the pâté at the end, after having tasted it.
Softened and creamed butter makes the pâté wonderfully creamy and smooth, so do not use butter directly from the refrigerator.
If you have leftover pâté, you can keep it in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days, covering it with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil; the oil keeps it from oxidising and allows for better preservation.
You can also serve any prepared liver you have left over on pasta, dried or fresh: Once the pasta is cooked, put the liver in a pan over low heat, add the drained pasta and a drizzle of cooking water, and mix well. Finish with a sprinkling of Parmigiano Reggiano.
You can also freeze the liver pâté in an airtight container. When you are ready to use it, let it thaw in the refrigerator and, before serving, thin it out with a drizzle of boiling water or vegetable broth to restore its original consistency.
This is a simplified version of the famous Sienese crostini. As with the Tuscan recipe, crostini made only with chicken livers are perfect as both hors d’oeuvres and appetisers.
You can also mix veal liver with the chicken livers, depending on your preference.
You can use a wine other than Marsala: Port works well, as does dry white wine or a light-bodied red wine, again depending on personal preference.
You can season the crostini with just sage or just bay leaves, or you can replace these herbs with fresh thyme or rosemary.
Ingredients for 4 people
200 g onions
500 g chicken livers
30 g anchovies in oil
30 g capers, desalinated
100 ml dry Marsala wine
1 bay leaf
1 sage leaf
200 g butter, softened
1 loaf of bread
30 g extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
Wine pairing
You can pair chicken liver crostini with a classic Tuscan red wine of medium body, such as a Rosso di Montepulciano; Cabernet Sauvignon or a South Tyrolean Cabernet-Merlot would also be excellent choices.
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