This recipe, originally made by my Mom (for years and years), was adapted from a recipe of Elsie Masterson’s from a cookbook entitled Blueberry Hill Cookbook. There is a wonderful article and tribute to Elsie Masterson that can be found in a blog that I came across that can be found here: http://dianacooks.com/2008/05/28/elsies-way/.
There are five of us siblings, my three sisters, my brother, and myself. We each have our own versions of this recipe, tweaked and adapted to our own satisfactions over the years. There has been numerous debates over which brand of liver sausage to use, how much of each additional ingredient is applied, and what additional ingredients that we have discovered to add to it to make it “just right”.
Pâté de Maison (My version)
1 lb. good quality liverwurst/liver sausage
¼ teaspoon salt
1 small onion, grated
½ teaspoon lemon juice (lime juice works just as well)
¼ teaspoon of finely ground fresh black pepper
2 pinches ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon sugar
3 teaspoons brandy (cognac, rum, or whiskey works well also…experiment!)
2 tablespoons of evaporated milk
2 hard-boiled eggs (optional, for layering, if molding)
Fresh herb or vegetable garnish (parsley sprigs, basil leaves, etc.)
Flexibility Options
-Add a couple of dashes of liquid smoke
-Substitute a good teriyaki or soy sauce for the brandy element
-garlic instead of onion
-honey instead of sugar
-sautéed sliced mushrooms instead of sliced hard-boiled eggs when molding
-finely chopped green pepper and carrot mixed throughout for a textural difference
Reduce the liverwurst almost to a paste. A food processor works really well for this recipe, just be careful not to over-process. Add the remaining ingredients except the milk, egg, and garnish. Thoroughly combine. Slowly add some milk and taste as you go. The milk will help you to achieve the consistency you are looking for and you may want to tweak the quantity of any of your ingredients for the desired taste. It should reach the consistency of heavy paste, almost like mud. If you are simply going to put it into a bowl and garnish it, the consistency could be a little “looser”. For molding purposes, a little thicker is better. To mold, line a small loaf pan, small bowl, or small terrine pan with plastic wrap. Layer some of your pâté into the mold and top with sliced egg being careful that the egg does not touch the sides. Then, alternate the layers to fill the mold, ending with pâté. Weight the top of the mold. Whether molding or not, refrigerate overnight (important, I promise, its taste will transform to a whole different dynamic the next day).
You can have a lot of fun with how you serve this recipe. I have sculpted it, when chilled, to look like a brain for a Halloween party (big hit), I have set it out molded on a bed of lettuce presented on a small crystal plate, and it’s been served in a small mixing bowl with a couple of table knives and a box of crackers. Have fun with it…let your serving method match your event. Goes well with just about any kind of cracker or Melba style toasts…Enjoy!
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