Oh, how I love pâté! It is one of my favourite things to eat, spread on a piece of toast with a little cornichon on the side.  I’m no stranger to chicken liver pâté, but this vegetarian incarnation is both rich and satisfying—especially when paired with blueberry preserves or dried apricots.

1/4 cup butter

2 cooking onions, thinly sliced (about 2 cups)

2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

2 ½ cups walnut halves

1 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

¼ cup red wine

3 tbsp tamari

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp fresh ground pepper

  1. Add the butter to a large skillet over medium low heat.  Once melted, add onions and garlic, and cook for 12-15 min, until onions are golden and beginning to caramelize.

  2. Add the walnuts and thyme and cook for another 3 min, stirring continuously.

  3. Add Dijon mustard and wine, scraping any brown bits from the bottom off the pan, and let the wine reduce until there is only about a tbsp of liquid left in the pan. Add tamari and stir to coat the nuts. Remove from heat.

  4. Pour mixture into a food processor fitted with an S-blade. Add lemon juice and process the mixture, scraping down the sides as needed, until the mixture has a smooth consistency. This may take a couple of turns in the processor, scraping down the sides between each pulse.

  5. Line 4 half-cup ramekins with plastic wrap, sprinkle bottom of each ramekin with 1/4 tbsp. of pepper. Then divide pâté evenly into each and press down firmly. Cover with plastic wrap and transfer to the fridge for a minimum of 1 hour.  The flavours take a while to fully develop, so leaving the pâté overnight before serving is best.

  6. Turn pate out on to a platter and remove plastic wrap. Serve  with crackers, vegetables, apricots and blueberry preserves.

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