Skip to main content

Cheater Foie Gras

Recipes, like everything else fashionable, rise and fall with popular perception. They’re in, they’re out, they’re hot, they’re hopelessly last season. Liver has never caught the wave of coolness, unless it’s taken from a force-fed goose. Even liver as haute couture as foie gras is on the OUT list, branded as inhumane and even outlawed in some places. Slumming with ready-to-wear liverwurst, on the other hand, is looking pretty fresh. Why shouldn’t it? Liverwurst has plenty in common with foie gras, especially its color and buttery smoothness when it’s blended with cream cheese. Instead of slapping it on rye bread with mustard, serve it with the sweet flavors that commonly adorn foie gras, and your perception will instantly change. This is absolutely one of R. B.’s favorite cheater recipes.

Recipe information

  • Yield

    makes 2 cups

Ingredients

8 ounces braunschweiger, softened
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 tablespoon coarse-grained mustard
1 tablespoon bottled smoke
Dash of hot pepper sauce

For Servings

Melba toast or crackers of your choice
Green apple slices, dates, or figs
Hot pepper jelly, fig or cherry preserves, orange marmalade, and/or smoked paprika for garnish

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    COMBINE the braunschweiger, cream cheese, mustard, bottled smoke, and hot pepper sauce in a medium bowl and blend together with a fork until creamy.

    Step 2

    PILE the mixture in a crock or bowl. Cover and chill until serving time.

    Step 3

    SERVE as a spread with toasts, fruit, and your choice of garnishes.

Cheater BBQ
Read More
Khao niaow ma muang, or steamed coconut sticky rice with ripe mango, is a classic in Thai cuisine—and you can make it at home.
Juicy peak-season tomatoes make the perfect plant-based swap for aguachile.
With just a handful of ingredients, this old-fashioned egg custard is the little black dress of dinner party desserts—simple and effortlessly chic.
This no-knead knockout gets its punch from tomatoes in two different ways.
Roasted poblanos, jalapeños, and red onion are coated with a melty sauce—warm with the flavors of pepper jack, and stabilized with a block of cream cheese.
With rich chocolate flavor and easy customization, this hot cocoa recipe is just the one you want to get you through winter.
This classic 15-minute sauce is your secret weapon for homemade mac and cheese, chowder, lasagna, and more.
A garlicky pistachio topping takes this sunny summer pasta from good to great.