Glazed venison pate

2 servings

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
1 pounds Venison (trimmed weight)
½ pounds Belly of pork (trimmed wt.)
½ pounds Chicken livers
1 small Orange
1 Lemon
2 Garlic cloves
1½ teaspoon Fresh thyme (more to taste)
Whole and ground bay leaves
1 tablespoon Red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon Olive oil
¼ pint Red wine
1 teaspoon Gelatine powder
A few kumquats to decorate

Directions

Mince all three meats fairly finely and put them into a bowl. Add the zest of the orange and lemon, the crushed garlic, the thyme, olive oil, vinegar, a generous pinch of powdered bay and plenty of black pepper. Mix thoroughly and stir in the wine. Cover and leave to marinate overnight.

Season with salt - I find 1 teaspoon about right but fry a small nugget of the mixture to check. Turn the pate into a terrine of about 2¼ pint capacity. Pack the mixture well down into the corners of the dish and use a spoon to hollow out slightly the centre top. Cover with greaseproof paper and foil, stand the dish in a roasting pan containing enough hot water to come halfway up the sides of the dish. Bake at 325 F (160 C) gas mark 3 for 2-¼ to 2-½ hours.

Using a bulb baster, remove and reserve most of the juices that surround the pate. Replace the greaseproof paper and foil, press the pate lightly with 1-½ to 2 lb weights and cool for 1-½ hours.

Then drain off any remaining juices that have not been re-absorbed by the pate. Mix all the venison juices that you have collected with the juice of the orange and measure. Add a splash of water if necessary to make ½ pint in total. Dissolve the gelatine powder in the mixture and use it to glaze the pate, adding a few bay leaves and kumquats to decorate if liked.

Source: Philippa Davenport in "Country Living" (British), November 1988. Typed for you by Karen Mintzias

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