Deliciously preserved: Chicken liver  pâté with chutney and brioche toast

You can make a vegetarian version of this pâté by replacing the livers with 400g sliced button or chestnut mushrooms.

SERVES 2 (makes about 200g pâté)

80g unsalted butter

2 tbsp olive oil

1 large onion, finely diced

1–2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 bay leaves

250g free-range chicken livers, trimmed and roughly chopped

40ml brandy

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

TO SERVE

4 thick slices of brioche

Blackberry and apple chutney

• Melt the butter and oil in a medium frying pan over a medium heat. Add the onion and season very generously, then gently sauté for 4–5 minutes until soft and translucent but not browned. Add the garlic and bay leaves and cook for 30 seconds, then add the livers and sauté, stirring intermittently, for 6–8 minutes until they look almost cooked through.
• Stir in the brandy, increase the heat slightly and simmer for a further 2–3 minutes until you see the first signs of sticking to the pan. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly.
• Remove the bay leaves and blend the mixture in a food processor until completely smooth, tasting and seasoning as you go. Strain/push through a fine-mesh sieve if you want your pâté extra smooth, otherwise scrape into a 250ml dish with a spatula. Cool, cover and store in the fridge. (For a bit of drama, clarify some butter, pour on top of the pâté and set a bay or sage leaf into it before cooling in the fridge.)
• To make sandwiches, toast each side of the slices of brioche in a frying pan with a little butter until golden. Spread a thick layer of pâté on 2 slices of brioche and a thick layer of chutney on the other 2 and sandwich them together. Cut off the crusts with a sharp knife and cut in half to serve.