Mock Chopped Liver
Ingredients
- 6 tbsp mild-flavored frying oil divided (2 to 3 medium onions, chopped
- 1 lb white mushrooms in 1/4 inch thick slices
- 3 hard boiled eggs quartered
- 1/2 cup shelled walnuts
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- Sliced scallions and/or butter lettuce optional - for garnish
Instructions
- In a large skillet or sauté pan, heat 3 tbsp oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions, and sauté until dark brown. Stir them every couple of minutes to keep from burning (and scrape the pan with a flat spatula as you do so). You want them to get really dark and caramelized. This should take at least 20 minutes, maybe more. Remove from pan and let cool on a plate or bowl.
- Using the same pan, and without cleaning it, add 3 more tbsp oil and keep on medium-high heat. Add the sliced mushrooms. Sauté until they soften and release their juices, then continue to cook until very browned, about 5 more minutes. Remove from pan and let cool.
- Add the onions, the mushrooms, and all the remaining ingredients to a food processor (or blender). Pulse a few times, then scrape down the side of the bowl. Run the processor some more, scraping the mixture down again, and keep repeating this until it's all well-blended and the walnuts are pulverized into the mix (if you see walnut pieces, keep going). Don't overdo it, though, or it'll turn into a paste.
- You can serve immediately (with matzo, or crackers), but it's actually even better when it has a chance to sit (refrigerated) for a few hours or overnight. Leftovers will keep, covered, in the fridge for about a week.
Notes
These are two recipes that come from opposite sides of my life. When I first married my husband whose family is Ashkenazi, my father in law made chopped liver for me. At the time I was transitioning away from eating meat, but not wanting to insult my new family, I ate it. It was delicious. Soon after we were married we stopped eating meat altogether so I replaced the chopped liver with this mock recipe. My father in law passed away this year on his 95th birthday. I often add a recipe to my holiday rotation to commemorate someone who has passed on. It can be something they liked to eat, or something they made for me. I think this take on that first dish Dad made will be his memorial.
I grew up in a Southern household raised by Black Southern cooks. My mother was famous for her cakes, and so on Shabbat, or at Thanksgiving I often bake this simple pound cake because every Southern cook worth her salt has an emergency pound cake in the freezer.