Chicken Liver Crostini (Tuscan “Crostini Neri”)
Chicken liver crostini, also known as crostini neri toscani, are a truly unique Tuscan appetizer. If you’ve never tried them, be sure to write them down, because they are extraordinary—just like so many other Tuscan recipes. All you need is some good country-style bread (or the classic Tuscan fruste for crostini), chicken livers, anchovies, and capers, and you already have the essential ingredients to prepare this dish at its best.
Here in Tuscany, we adore them: no Sunday lunch is complete without crostini on the table. Of course, you can also find the liver spread ready-made in supermarkets, but the homemade version is on a whole different level.
INGREDIENTS (serves 6)
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Stale Tuscan bread (a few days old)
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400 g chicken livers
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1 garlic clove
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1 small red onion
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A few sage leaves
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100 ml Vin Santo or white wine
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1 teaspoon anchovy paste (optional)
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60 g capers (drained if in vinegar)
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Juice of half a small lemon
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Vegetable or chicken broth
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Extra virgin olive oil
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Salt
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Pepper
METHOD
In a pan, heat the olive oil with the garlic, sliced onion, sage, chicken livers, salt, and pepper. Cook gently over low heat for 15–20 minutes, covered, stirring occasionally.
Once cooked, chop everything finely with a knife. Return the mixture to the same pan over low heat; when it begins to stick slightly, add the Vin Santo or white wine and cook for another 5 minutes.
Finely blend the capers and add them to the mixture along with the anchovy paste (if using). Cook for another 3 minutes. Add the lemon juice and cook for 2 more minutes. If the mixture is too thick, add a little warm broth.
Slice the bread, moisten it lightly in warm broth, and spread with a generous layer of the liver sauce.
DAMARE ROSSO
Damare Rosso was created with the ambition of expressing the strong vocation of our territory in an international key. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Petit Verdot come together to deliver harmony, elegance, and finesse in a modern wine with an unmistakable Tuscan style.
TASTING NOTES
An intense purple color with aromas of wild blackberries, strawberry preserves, and blackcurrant. It reveals a fine floral freshness with Damask rose, accompanied by enticing menthol notes of eucalyptus and peppermint. On the palate, the wine impresses with its firm tannic grip and subtle herbal hints that blend with green pepper, tobacco, and Mediterranean scrub, recalling laurel and mastic on the finish. Agile and fresh, yet always intensely fruity and with an underlying, delicate sweetness.