Dairy Free Chicken Liver Mousse

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I’ve long loved Julia Child, and her recipe for Chicken Liver Mousse is sublime.  I used to make it as is, but in recent years I tweaked it to make it dairy free and alcohol free.  Thanks to the invention of superb high powered blenders like the Vitamix, you no longer need to sieve the mixture.  You can puree the whole thing to a silky smooth texture and get on with your day.  I’m confident that Julia would have loved using the Vitamix for this recipe, among other delicious things like vichyssoise and crepe batter.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

If you struggle to eat any kind of organ meat at all, I encourage you to try this recipe.  It's basically just a meat spread, with no grittiness, metallic flavor, or difficult textures.  Just a silky smooth spread that tastes delicious on any kind of raw vegetable, or even sliced apple.  It would go great as part of a charcuterie board, alongside olives, pickles, nuts, cheeses, cured meats, soft cheeses and sliced baguette or crackers.  Of course at my house we simply use the veggies, fruit, pickles, olives, and my favorite plantain chips.  If I'm trying to make a solid meal of it, I set out some prosciutto, and some sliced cheese for my family as well as a nice gluten free bread.  In the past we have even had cold sliced leftover chicken breast, and some kind of fruit chutney, too.  If you can have nuts, I would definitely set some out!  This would be a great spread for a small party or gathering, or you could even take it to a potluck!  If you plan on that, I'd use a large shallow dish instead of small ramekins.

Chicken Liver Mousse (Pate)
AIP, Paleo

Serves 4-8 as a main course, many more as an appetizer or part of a charcuterie board

Adapted from Mastering the Art of French Cooking (Beck, Bertholle & Child, 1961)

1 pound chicken livers

2 tablespoons minced shallot, or any other onion(use green onion tops for low FODMAP)

2 tablespoons coconut oil

1/3 cup apple cider vinegar

¼ cup full fat coconut milk

1/8 teaspoon allspice(omit for AIP)

1/8 teaspoon pepper(omit for AIP)

1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme

½ teaspoon sea salt

½ cup melted bacon fat

More salt and pepper to taste, if needed

Slice the livers into small pieces of about 1/2 inch or so.  Remove any dark spots and gristle.

In a large skillet melt the coconut oil over medium heat.  Sauté the minced onion for a minute, then add the livers.  Cook until they are just stiffened but still pink inside.  Scrape the contents of the skillet into the jar of a high powered blender.

In the same skillet add the vinegar, and boil down to reduce to about 3 tablespoons.  Add to the blender jar.  Add the coconut milk and seasonings, and blend at high speed until the liver is a smooth paste.  It should take about 1 minute, you can stop it once and scrape down the sides.

Meanwhile, melt the bacon fat in the skillet and add to the blender.  Blend the mixture again to emulsify, starting out slow and increasing it to high.  Be careful of the hot fat, make sure the lid is on tight!  This should take about 1-3 minutes.  You want to blend it really well so it is fully emulsified and won’t break.  You may need to scrape down the sides of the blender once or twice.

At this point taste the mixture and season with salt and pepper if it is needed.  Once it's seasoned to your liking, pour into your container of choice.  Several ramekins, or a shallow baking dish works well.  I like to cover with a piece of parchment paper(it absorbs the condensation), having the paper touching the mousse.  Cover with plastic wrap and chill it well, for several hours(until firm, though you can eat it before then if you can't wait).  You can also use small mason jars with plastic lids.

I like to serve this with sliced apple, sliced zucchini, celery sticks, carrot sticks, radishes, and plantain chips.  Delicious alongside little pickles, olives, and if you tolerate it, cheeses or baguette.

This keeps well for a week in the fridge.  You can also freeze it in ramekins or mason jars, well wrapped, for up to 6 months.  Thaw in the fridge overnight.