by Selva Wohlgemuth, Registered Dietitian and Nutritionist
March 2019
This recipe makes a lot of pate. You can easily freeze the pâté and thaw for use later if you need a quick and tasty appetizer or breakfast spread.
Being nutritionally dense, this recipe is particularly appropriate for meeting the nutritional needs of mothers during the postpartum period.
Old World Lamb Liver Pâté
INGREDIENTS
- ½ cup + 2 tablespoons organic grass-fed butter (I use Organic Valley, green label)
- 2 cups diced yellow onion
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh sage, finely minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh oregano, finely minced
- 1 pound organic grass-fed lamb liver, diced or thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons half and half
- 1 teaspoon real sea salt
- 1 teaspoon fresh ground allspice (I use a clean coffee grinder to grind up allspice berries)
- ½ teaspoon ground pepper
METHOD
- In a large skillet (not cast iron), heat the butter over medium heat until melted. Reduce heat to medium low and add the yellow onion and sauté 10 minutes. Then add the garlic and the freshly minced herbs. Sauté another 10 minutes until the onions are caramelized.
- Meanwhile cut away any membranes on the liver. Sometimes this is already done depending what liver you buy, and if you can find it, it will surely save you a bit of time! See this post for pictures if you still need to cut away membranes.
- When the onions are starting to caramelize reduce the heat to low and with a slotted spoon transfer the onion mixture into a food processor. Return the heat to medium and sauté the liver until no longer bloody, but still slightly pink inside, just a couple minutes. Turn off the heat and allow the lamb to cool a bit.
- Meanwhile process the onion mixture until smooth. Then add the liver, half and half, sea salt, allspice, and ground pepper. Process until smooth.
- Line a container with plastic wrap and pour the liver pâté into the container. Smooth with a spatula and cover. Refrigerate. Once cool and hard you can turn the container over onto a plate and peel away the plastic wrap, allowing you to slice the pâté OR just pour into a container from which you can spoon the pâté out of.
