Liver, Avocado and Cashew Salad

Ingredients:
350 grams beef liver (sliced, 4 slices)
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
2 c, arugula
2 c. mixed greens
1 c. red onion (very thin slices)
1 large avocado (ripe, diced)
150 grams roasted, salted cashews

1 c. flour
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. paprika

1/2 c. dry sherry

cooking fat (butter, bacon fat, peanut oil, etc)

Method:
Marinate the liver in the balsamic vinegar overnight.

The next day, mix together the flour and spices.  The liver, if bought in slices are likely large and should be cut up into manageable pieces.  Coat each liver slice in the flour mix, then fry in a skillet in the oil for 1 minute on each side.  Don't overcook the liver. 

Once that's all cooked, slice each liver piece up into bite-sized pieces. 

For a sauce, pour the remainder of the marinade into the saucepan and add 1 tbsp of flour and 1 tbsp of butter.  Make a roux by gradually adding water and 1/2 c. of dry sherry.  The sauce should be fairly loose and pourable. 

Toss together the salad pieces; arugula, greens, avocado, cashews.  Bring to boil a small pot of water and blanch the onions for 1 minute.  Add the onions, liver, drizzle with the sauce and toss.

Pear and Cream Cheese Tart

This is light, fruity and wonderful.  I tried making it with apples and it didn't come quite as nice.  I think its because 60 minutes wasn't enough to cook the apples all the way through.  Pears and apples have different densities.  If doing apples, I'd turn the over down to 325°F or 300°F and cook for 90 minutes

Crust:
1 cups (130 g) all purpose flour
1 small egg
1/2 tsp. salt (skip if using salted butter)
1 tsp. sugar (for sweet recipes, otherwise skip)
1 stick unsalted butter
1/4 cup (~60 ml) sour cream (full fat, NOT light sour cream)

Filling:
1 8 oz package cream cheese, softened
1/2 c. sour cream
1/3 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
2 tbsp flour
1 tbsp orange juice

3 ripe pears, cored, sliced thin

orange marmalade or apricot jam

Method:
Oven @ 350 F.  Make the crust first.  It doesn't need pre-baking and works fine baking all at once.  Put all the ingredients for the crust into a bowl and mix with a pastry blender until you have a firm, doughy consistency.  You can chill for 20 minutes, but its not really necessary.  Roll out and press into either a 10 inch spring-form cake pan or a equal sized tart pan.  If you use smaller than 10 inches, you'll get a thicker crust.

Whip the cream cheese until smooth with an electric mixer first, then blend in the sour cream, while sifting in the flour.  Once that's smooth, add the eggs, sugar, vanilla and orange juice.  The batter should be pourable but not extremely loose.

Pour the batter onto the unbaked crust.  Carefully layer all of the pears onto the crust.  Use them all.  Make multiple layers if necessary and overlap heavily.

Melt the jam/marmalade in the microwave and brush over the pears.

Bake the pastry in the over at 350°F for 60 minutes.

Sour Cream Pie & Pastry Crust

Prep time: 20 minutes; Dough chilling time: 1 hour

Yield: Makes dough for 2 single crusts, or 1 double crust

This recipe makes enough dough for a top and bottom crust for a 9-inch pie.

The dough ratio is 1 cup flour: 1 stick butter: 1/4 cup sour cream: 1/2 teaspoon salt: 1 teaspoon sugar. These are the amounts for a single-crust 9-inch pie.

If you are making a 10-inch pie, use 2 1/2 cups flour, 2 1/2 sticks (10 ounces, 1  1/4 cup) butter, 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp sour cream for a double crust, or 1 1/4 cups flour, 1 1/4 sticks (5 ounces) butter, 1/4 cup plus 1 Tbsp sour cream for a single crust.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups (260 g) all purpose flour

1 teaspoon of salt (skip if using salted butter)

2 teaspoons of sugar (for sweet recipes, otherwise skip)

2 sticks unsalted butter (1 cup, 8 ounces, 225 g) cubed

1/2 cup (115 ml) sour cream (full fat, NOT light sour cream)

METHOD

Soften butter, cut into cubes.  Whisk together flour, salt, sugar. In a large bowl.

With a pastry blender, work the butter into the flour until it resembles a coarse meal with some chunks of butter. Add sour cream to the flour-butter mixture and blend with pastry blender. 

Gather the pastry dough together into a large ball. Use a knife to cut the ball in half. Form into two disks.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes before forming into a pie crust.

 

When it's time to bake, remove dough from fridge, let sit for a few minutes, then roll out.  

You can use this pastry dough for unstructured rustic pies or galettes, or single or double crusted traditional pies. It can also be used for a savory pot pie.

Whether you use the dough for a galette or a double crust pie, it will be prettier with a light egg wash. Just whisk one egg in a small bowl, add a teaspoon of water, and brush lightly over the exposed crust with a pastry brush, right before baking.

 

This pie crust recipe is difficult to pre-bake. There is more fat in it than a regular crust, which can cause the sides to slump if you bake it without a filling. That said, I have successfully pre-baked this crust by freezing it for at least 30 minutes first, lining it with heavy foil, filling it 3/4 of the way with dry beans, then baking it at 350°F for 30 minutes.