Bacon Wrapped Scallops
If you are serving cocktails for more than 20 minutes you need to help your guests along with something more substantial than a cracker. This is where this tasty dish comes in.
2 pounds medium size scallops
1 pound bacon
Toothpicks
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F/
You will need a large cookie tray, preferably with sides, for this.
• Cut the bacon in half.
• Wrap one piece around each scallop and secure with a toothpick.
• Depending on the size of your oven and cookie sheets you may need more than one tray.
• Bake for 25 minutes or until the bacon crisps and shrinks around the scallop.
Substitutions:
• Canned water chestnuts can be used instead of scallops.
• They are a surprisingly good combination.
• If you like liver, you can also add 1 pound of chicken livers cut in half and marinated in ½ cup of soy sauce and 1/3 cup of oil and 2 finely chopped garlic cloves.
• After removing the livers from the marinate proceed the same way you would with the scallops only add a water chestnut, and secure the whole thing with a toothpick and cook until the bacon is crisp.
Chopped Liver
2 pounds chicken livers
1 cup rendered chicken fat*
2 cups yellow onion, diced
1/3 cup Madeira wine
5 eggs, hard boiled, peeled and diced
1/3 cup parsley, minced
2 tsps. Thyme
2 tsps. Coarse salt
1 tsps. black pepper
1/8 tsp. cayenne
• Drain the livers and sauté them in two batches in 2 tsps of the chicken fat over a medium heat.
• Turn them once and cook them for about 5 minutes or until they are just scarcely pink inside.
• You want to be careful not to overcook them or they will be dry.
• Transfer them to a large bowl.
• Using the same pan sauté the onions in three tbs. of chicken fat over a medium heat for about 10 minutes or until browned.
• Add the wine and deglaze the pan and pour this into the bowl with the livers, scraping down the sides of the pan.
• Add the remainder of the ingredients to the bowl with the livers and toss them together. Transfer the mixture to a food processor with a steel blade attachment.
• Pulse it about 8 times to combine and chop into a coarse mixture.
• Chill and serve it on crackers.
Yield: 5 cups
*Place the fat in a small pan and cook on low until the fat melts and store it in the refrigerator
Country Pate
1 cup finely chopped onion
2 tablespoons butter
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried, crumbled
1 tablespoon course salt
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1/2 teaspoon whole allspice or 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup heavy cream
3 medium eggs
3 tablespoons Cognac or other brandy
1/2 lb chicken livers, trimmed
1 lb ground fatty pork shoulder or half lean pork and half fresh pork fatback (without rind)
1/2 lb ground fatty veal (preferably veal breast)
1/2 lb baked ham (1/2-inch slice), cut into 1/2-inch cubes
14 bacon slices (about 3/4 lb)
Special equipment:
1. An electric coffee/spice grinder
2. A 6-cup terrine mold or loaf pan
3. An instant-read thermometer
Accompaniments:
• cornichons
• mustard; bread or crackers
Assemble and marinate terrine:
• Cook onion in butter in a 10-inch heavy skillet, covered, over moderately low heat, stirring frequently, until soft, about 10 minutes.
• Add garlic and thyme and cook, stirring, 1 minute.
• Transfer to a large bowl set in a bowl of ice.
• While onion cools, pulse salt, peppercorns, allspice, nutmeg, and bay leaf in grinder until finely ground.
• Add to onion mixture and whisk in cream, eggs, and brandy until combined well.
• Pulse chicken livers in a food processor until finely chopped.
• Add to onion mixture along with ground pork and veal.
• Mix together well with your hands or a wooden spoon.
• Stir in ham cubes.
• Line bottom and long sides of terrine mold crosswise with about 6 to 9 strips of bacon.
• Arrange them close together but not overlapping, leaving a 1/2- to 2-inch overhang.
• Fill terrine evenly with ground-meat mixture, rapping terrine on counter to compact it (it will mound slightly above edge).
• Cover top of terrine lengthwise with 2 or 3 more bacon slices if necessary to cover completely, and fold overhanging ends of bacon back over these.
• Cover terrine with plastic wrap and chill at least 8 hours to marinate meats.
Bake terrine:
• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
• Discard plastic wrap and cover terrine tightly with a double layer of foil.
• Bake terrine in a water bath until thermometer inserted diagonally through foil at least 2 inches into center of terrine registers 155 to 160°F, 1 3/4 to 2 hours.
• Remove foil and let terrine stand in mold on a rack, 30 minutes.
Weight terrine:
• Put terrine in mold in a cleaned baking pan.
• Put a piece of parchment or wax paper over top of terrine.
• Place on top of parchment another same-size terrine mold or a piece of wood or heavy cardboard cut to fit inside mold and wrapped in foil.
• Put 2 to 3 (1-pound) cans on terrine or on wood or cardboard to weight cooked terrine.
• Chill terrine in pan with weights until completely cold, at least 4 hours.
• Continue to chill terrine, with or without weights, at least 24 hours to allow flavors to develop.
To serve:
• Run a knife around inside edge of terrine and let stand in mold in a pan with 1 inch of hot water (to loosen the bottom) for 2 minutes.
• Tip terrine mold (holding terrine) to drain excess liquid.
• Invert a cutting board over terrine.
• Reinvert terrine onto cutting board, and gently wipe outside of terrine (bacon strips) with a paper towel.
• Let terrine stand at room temperature for 30 minutes before serving.
• Transfer to a platter if desired and cut, as needed, into 1/2-inch-thick slices.
Cooks’ notes:
• Terrine can be marinated (before baking) up to 24 hours.
• Terrine keeps, wrapped in plastic wrap and chilled, 2 weeks.
Serves 14
ITALIAN SAUSAGE TERRINE
(30 1/4″ slices or sliced 1/2″ thick as entree)
1 lb. sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
1 lb. chicken livers
1 medium onion, chopped
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup brandy
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. allspice
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
pinch ground cloves
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 garlic cloves chopped 3 eggs
1/2 lb. sliced bacon
In a large skillet cook sausage, stirring until brown. Drain on paper towels, set aside in bowl.
In blender combine remaining ingredients except bacon, for 45 seconds. Stir in sausage.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line loaf pan with heavy foil, letting 3″ hang over the sides. Place bacon slices crosswise across bottom and up sides, letting slices overhang pan. Pour in sausage mixture; fold bacon over top. Place loaf pan in a shallow pan; pour 1″ hot water into shallow pan. Bake 1-1/2 hours.
Remove loaf pan from water, fold foil over top. Place heavy can on terrine to weight down. Press firmly 2 minutes. Refrigerate with weight until firm, about 6 hours.
To remove terrine, loosen foil from sides of pan, grasp ends of foil, and lift out. Cut into slices.