CHICKEN LIVERS ON A WITLOOF & WALNUT SALAD WITH WALNUT OIL DRESSING

SERVES 8 / PREPARATION 15 MINUTES / COOKING 5-10 MINUTES

I always loved this dish: the bitter witloof, the creamy texture of the livers, and nut oil, an ingredient that had just become available. I’ve added into the original recipe some raspberry vinegar, which was also a newly available ingredient here, one that was made popular by the nouvelle cuisine emanating from the young guns in France who were influencing our cooking.

800g chicken livers

3 heads witloof

1 cup walnut halves, fresh if possible 4 tablespoons raspberry vinegar 4 tablespoons walnut oil butter and olive oil, for frying 4 shallots, finely chopped sprigs of fresh chervil, to serve

Trim the chicken livers of fat and sinews and cut into lobes. Trim the witloof and separate the leaves, wash, spin dry and set aside. Toast the walnuts in a little olive oil and break into pieces.

Make a vinaigrette by whisking together 3 tablespoons of the raspberry vinegar, the walnut oil and some salt and pepper to taste. Arrange the witloof leaves in a decorative way on your serving plate, sprinkle over the toasted walnuts and dress the salad with the vinaigrette.

Melt a tablespoon of butter and 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a heavy-based pan until it ‘sings’. Add the chicken livers and fry, turning as they colour (only fry a few at a time or the temperature will drop and the livers will start to stew). Season with salt and pepper. Once seared, but still pink inside, remove from the pan and set aside to rest for a bit, covering to keep warm. Add the shallots to the pan and stir quickly. Add the remaining tablespoon of raspberry vinegar, remove from the heat and swirl in a knob of butter to glaze the sauce. Arrange the chicken livers on the salad and pour over the pan sauce. Garnish with the chervil sprigs and serve.