local sauce

DEVILLED LIVERS

People can be very squeamish about liver. Hopefully if you try this recipe you will be convinced to liver little.

'What the hell is devilling?'  First seen in eighteeth-century cookery books, it means to cook in a fiery hot sauce...something to do with the devil and the heat in hell.

These are anything but hellish, nor are they particularly spicy, simply because I prefer the sweet to the spicy on this one. However you can change that by adding cayenne pepper if you'd like. For me this is a fatty and naughty favourite.

I first had it as a starter in a restaurant in Cardiff. It was rich and creamy and to be honest a little bit orgasmic. A memorable taste! Having said that, I'd rather serve it among some other little dishes; a meal for sharing, more a tapas-like affair than a starter. Watch out though, while they're rich they're also very moreish.

Ingredients
150g chicken livers, sinew removed
Half an onion thinly sliced
2 nobs of butter
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
Tbsp whole grain mustard
Tbsp sugar
5 Tbsps double cream
1 Tbsps madiera
A pinch of smoked paprika
A pinch of cayenne pepper (optional, add at the same time as the paprika)
Brioche, thickly sliced
A handful of chopped parsley
Salt and Black pepper to season 

To the hob
Soften the onions in the butter on a low heat. Once they have become transparent and squidgy turn the heat up and add the madiera and the sugar and smoked paprika, until the onions have become nice and sticky. Set the onions aside and brown the livers for about a minute on each side. Return the onions to the pan and add the garlic, the mustard and the double cream. Boil for 1 minute and set aside. Add a pinch of salt and some black pepper to season.

Fry the brioche in the butter til lightly browned and crisp on both sides. Top the brioche with the onion and liver mix and grill it until a caramelised colour appears on the livers.

Serve
Serve immediately with some chopped parsley to garnish