Chicken Liver Pâté

inspiration: This is perfect for the holidays and for entertaining for a few reasons.  First of all, Chicken Liver Pâté is extremely decadent and tasty.  So much so that it's a good idea not to eat this often, so for a special occasion, this is perfect.  Second of all, the Pâté can be made in advance (at least a few days even) so the prep time is extremely ideal.  And third of all, the ingredients couldn't be more budget friendly.  Try different toppings to change it up a bit.  The recipe below is a classic preparation, but with a few additions, this can easily be changed up to fit a variety of styles.  Add some rosemary and lemon zest for a Tuscan twist, add some cilantro and chilies as a garnish and it has a south western twist, or add some curry powder for a bit of an Indian twist.  Get creative and enjoy!

ingredients:

• 4 tbsp. butter
• 1 cup onion, chopped
• 6 - 8 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 lb. chicken liver
• 1/2 cup dry sherry (really any fortified wine will do like marsala or madiera)
• 1/3 cup parsley, chopped
• salt and pepper
• 2 eggs, hard boiled
• 1 tsp. sherry vinegar

method: Start by cleaning the chicken livers by cutting out any fat and connective tissue and set aside.

In skillet, over medium-low heat, add the butter. Add the onion and begin to sweat slowly till the onions begin to get a slight caramel color.  Add the garlic and some salt and pepper.  When the pan is  ready for deglazing, add the sherry.  Add the chicken livers and continue to cook till the the livers are cooked through and pale pink in the center.  Remove from the heat and let cool for a few minutes.  While the liver mixture is cooling, prep your food processor.  Add the parsley, eggs, liver mixture, and sherry vinegar and pulse/puree in food processor to a fairly fine paste.  Check seasonings and add salt and pepper as needed.  Store in an air tight container and refrigerate till ready to serve.  Should be served cold, or slightly room temperature with crostini.

entertaining notes: The chicken liver pate can be made in advance and refrigerated till ready to serve.  The pate is best on day 1 and 2 - it's still very good on day 2 and 3 - however day 4 and on is pushing it.

Yields: 3 cups

Mini Chipotle Meatballs

inspiration: One of our favorite restaurants for Mexican food serves almost everything alongside their Chipotle Sauce.  We love it so much that we did many trial runs of the sauce till we discovered that it's even more simple than we realized - the recipe is below.

Just a few weeks ago, for our Holiday Party, we were toying with the idea of doing meatballs because we wanted to do something with meat and we liked that they were bite sized and easy to make and store.  When we thought about combining our favorite traditionally Mexican-styled sauce with the tiny meatballs, we discovered that we were on to something.  They were very easy to make, very easy to store, very easy to bake off, and so tasty that we had to keep refilling the platter before we had time to bake off another round.  They were definitely the hit of the party and someone even commented that these had "restored their faith in a killer meatball!"  That was the best complement we could get and these will go in our entertaining repertoire permanently.

ingredients:

• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp. garlic, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp. chipotles canned in adobo, finely chopped and seeded (plus 3 tbsp. of the adobo sauce)
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• 1 lb. ground pork
• 1 lb. ground beef
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 2 cups sour cream
• 2 tbsp. mayonnaise
• salt and pepper

method: In a large bowl, combine milk and breadcrumbs and allow to fully soak for at least 20 minutes.

In a medium saucepan, add the olive oil and cook the onion, garlic, chipotles, cumin, and oregano and cook till everything is light brown and sweated, about 7 minutes. Add some water to deglaze and let cool slightly. Stir onion mixture into the milk and panko.  Add to the bowl the ground meats, egg, parsley, 1 teaspoon salt and mix well.

Preheat oven to 450 (convect if possible).  Form about 3/4 inch balls of meat mixture and lay out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Cook in the oven for about 20-25 minutes (do not turn) until browned and cooked through.

Note: Meatballs can be formed, but not cooked, 2 day ahead and chilled.

Chipotle sauce: In a medium bowl, combine sour cream, mayonnaise, the 3 tbsp. of the chipotle adobo sauce, and salt and pepper.  Combine till all smooth and plate in a bowl to accompany the meatballs.  Note: Chipotle sauce can be made up to 5 days in advance and chilled.

Yields approximately 60-70 meatballs

Baked Shrimp Scampi with Cocktail Sauce

inspiration: We pay a little homage to the delicious yet retro Shrimp Cocktail with these.  The flavor is reminiscent of the Italian classic Shrimp Scampi with the addition of cocktail sauce for that traditional pairing.  The result is a sweet shrimp morsel with the flavor turned way up!

ingredients:

• 1 lb. jumbo shrimp, cleaned and de-veined
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. fresh thyme
• 1 tsp. lemon zest
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• salt and pepper, to taste
• cocktail sauce (home-made or store bought)

method: Preheat oven to 425.  Combine shrimp, garlic, thyme, zest, olive oil, salt, and pepper in a bowl and toss to combine.  Lay shrimp out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake for about 12-15 minutes or until the shrimp are just turned pink and look opaque.  Plate and serve with your favorite cocktail sauce.

Serves 4-6 people as an appetizer

Mushroom Puffs

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inspiration: These adorable, little puff pastry nuggets were morphed from a recipe we found and loved for Mushroom Tartlets.  We took the base idea from the Tartlets and combined them with the more traditional method of Russian Piroshki which are larger and more like puff pastry pockets.  Since they are so tasty, we kept serving them at dinner parties as hors d'oeuvres and each time felt they were too big and so much work.  After a few trial runs and many many versions, we found that doing them this way allowed for more of a bite sized piece and a lot less effort for the hosts.  All in all, these are such a hit at parties and can be stuffed with virtually anything once you get the method down.

ingredients:

• 1.5 lbs. white cap mushrooms, sliced (about 25-30 mushrooms)
• 1 lb. portobello mushrooms, sliced (about 3 large caps)
• 1 cup yellow onion, chopped (about 1 large)
• 6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp. fresh thyme
• 2 tbsp. butter
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 4 tbsp. sherry vinegar
• 1/2 cup parsley, finely chopped
• 1 tsp. truffle oil (optional, for increasing the mushroom-y flavor)
• 1 - 1.5 cup panko
• 5-6 eggs (3-4 for binding and 2 for egg wash)
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 package puff pastry, thawed and ready to use

method: Saute mushrooms, onions, garlic, and thyme in butter and olive oil till very brown and cooked well, about 25 minutes.  Remove from heat and add the vinegar.  Allow to cool thoroughly and once cool, chop finely, and add the parsley and truffle oil.  Add the panko and 3-4 of the eggs to bind together, till it looks more like sausage meat and you can easily form the mixture into a log without it crumbling.

Dust counter surface and roller with flour and roll out each sheet of puff pastry dough into 3, 5x10" sheets.  Place mushroom mixture in a log down the middle of the long part of the sheet.  Egg wash one long end of the sheet and roll into a log.  Refrigerate or freeze till set or until ready to use.

Preheat oven to 425 (convect if possible).  Cut logs into 1" pieces, slightly on a bias.  Place on a baking sheet lined with parchement paper so they are crowded but not touching.  Egg wash the pieces (with just egg, no water) and place in the oven.  Bake for 20 minutes or until nice and golden brown and cooked.

Yields about 48 pieces

Steak Tartare with Crostini

inspiration: Hands down the best Steak Tartare in New York City in our opinion is at Blue Ribbon Brasserie in Soho.  Theirs is served with many accompaniments like cornichons, mustards, capers, shallots.  Our inspiration came from their taste, but we decided to combine everything together.  The result - a very extravagant and decadent appetizer that is perfect for a Holiday or Special Occasion.  It's traditionally served with Crostini (recipe below) but we opted for these great flat bread crackers for drama.

ingredients:

• 1/2 lb. ground beef sirloin from your favorite butcher (and mention it will be eaten raw)
• 1 tbsp. shallot, minced
• 1 tbsp. capers, minced
• 2 tbsp. parsley, finely chopped
• 4 tsp. dijon mustard
• 1 tbsp. hot sauce (like Franks or Tabasco)
• 2 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tbsp. olive oil (and more for crostini)
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 egg yolk (optional)
• 1 baguette, sliced and toasted for crostini or your favorite cracker

method: In a large bowl, combine the beef, shallot, capers, parsley, dijon, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, olive oil, and salt and pepper.  Refrigerate till just ready to serve.  Once ready to serve, plate in a serving bowl, or as we did above with ring molds.

Crostini: For the crostini, preheat the oven to 400.  Slice a baguette or chiabatta and place on a baking sheet in one layer.  Brush each slice with a scant amount of olive oil.  Bake for about 10-15 minutes or until the crostini are just light brown.  Let cool completely and store in an air tight container or freezer bag till ready to use.  Note: can be made 2 days in advance.

Serves 4-6 people