Tuscan Chicken Livers Recipes

TUSCAN CHICKEN LIVERS

Steps:

• Wash chicken livers under cold running water. Dry well, and season with salt and pepper. Dust chicken livers with flour; set aside.
• In a large nonstick saute pan, combine olive oil, onion, sage, chopped garlic, red-pepper flakes, capers, and anchovies. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, for 3 minutes. Add chicken livers, one piece at a time. Cook, covered, until evenly browned, about 3 minutes on each side. Add Vin Santo, scraping the brown bits from the bottom of the saute pan. Cook until the wine has reduced by half, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in tomato, and cook, stirring occasionally, about 6 minutes. (The dish should be slightly soupy. If it starts to become dry, add a little water.) Remove the saute pan from the heat, and stir in parsley.
• Rub the toasts with the whole garlic clove. Drizzle with olive oil, and season with black pepper. Spoon the livers over the toasts, and serve immediately.

TUSCAN CHICKEN LIVER SAUCE

Steps:

• Heat one tablespoon oil in a large skillet. Add pancetta, and cook, stirring, until it just begins to brown. Reduce heat to low, add another tablespoon of oil, and stir in shallots and sage. Cook for about a minute, until shallots have softened.
• Add livers, capers and optional anchovies. Stir, adding 3 to 5 more tablespoons oil. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until livers are putty-colored but have not become stiff. Stir in most of the wine.
• Bring to a simmer, and season generously with pepper. Add salt if needed. Simmer 5 to 10 minutes, until some of the liquid has cooked down and mixture is thick enough to hold its shape on a spoon but is not dry. Remove from heat, add bay leaf, and set aside for 15 to 20 minutes.
• Briefly reheat mixture, adjusting oil, wine and seasonings to taste. Remove bay leaf, and serve spooned over toast or on polenta, pappardelle or mashed potatoes.

TUSCAN CHICKEN-LIVER CROSTINI

Steps:

• Rinse the chicken livers under running water and pat dry with paper towel. Cut away any greenish discolored parts. Cut the onion in half and slice each half thinly. Mash the garlic with the flat blade of a knife and chop coarsely.
• Heat the olive oil in a saute pan. Add onion and garlic and cook gently until onion is softened. Add chicken livers. Turn heat up to medium and cook briskly until livers are thoroughly browned.
• Add white wine and chicken stock. Lower heat and simmer approximately 20 minutes, until livers are cooked through. Mash the livers with a fork, or pass them through a food mill to puree them. The texture should be more grainy than smooth. Mix with capers, taste for seasoning, and add salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve with the sliced bread, either plain or toasted.

CHICKEN LIVERS AND ONIONS, VENETIAN STYLE

Steps:

• Mix the raisins and vinegar together and set aside.
• Trim the livers of any membranes or connective tissue. Cut the pairs in half, making all the pieces as uniform as possible. Pat the livers dry on paper towels.
• Heat the oil in a large, heavy skillet. Add onions and saute slowly, over low heat, until golden and tender, about 20 minutes. Transfer onions to a bowl, draining as much of the oil as possible into skillet.
• Increase the heat to high, add the livers and cook them very quickly, moving them around in the oil, for three to five minutes until they begin to brown but are still pink inside. Season with salt and pepper.
• Sprinkle with sage and wine and the raisins and vinegar. Reduce heat to low, return onions to pan, mix them in to reheat. Serve liver and onions moistened with the pan juices.

TUSCAN CHICKEN

Steps:

• Flatten chicken to 1/2-in. thickness; sprinkle with salt and pepper., In a large skillet over medium heat, cook and stir the garlic, rosemary, sage and thyme in oil for 1 minute. Add chicken; cook for 5-6 minutes on each side or until chicken juices run clear.