Tuscan Crostini with Chicken Livers

La storia di questo piatto

Crostini neri are the Tuscan table's autumn overture, a peasant tradition found across the whole region, from Arezzo to Florence, Prato, Pistoia and Pisa, with Siena adding veal spleen to the mix. No one can date its birth, though a tale links it to Catherine de' Medici, unproven and best left as legend.

Ingredienti

• 200 g Chicken livers
• 100 g Veal spleen, cleaned
• 8 piece Tuscan unsalted bread, cut into 1 cm thick slices
• 1/2 piece Golden onion
• 15 g Salt-cured capers
• 2 piece Anchovies in oil
• 60 ml Vin Santo
• 150 ml Chicken broth
• 20 g Butter
• 3 tablespoon Extra virgin olive oil
• 3 g Fine salt
• 1 pinch Ground black pepper

Preparazione

1. Place the capers in a small bowl of cold water for 10 minutes, then rinse and squeeze them: this removes excess salt while keeping their fragrance. Meanwhile, clean the chicken livers with a knife, carefully removing any greenish traces (the bile is bitter and ruins everything) and any fatty parts or filaments, then cut them into coarse pieces. Clean the spleen: score the outer membrane, scrape the flesh with the back of the knife and discard the thin skin. Finely chop the onion.
2. In a large pan, heat the oil with the butter over low heat, then add the onion with a pinch of salt (about 1 g of the 3 g total). Let it soften gently for about 8 minutes, stirring, until translucent and sweetly fragrant, without taking on dark color. The salt added now draws water out of the onion and seasons it from within: this is the first layer.
3. Raise the heat to medium-high, add the chicken livers and spleen flesh and sear for 4-5 minutes, turning them: on the surface they should go from bright red to brown, while inside they stay just pink. Deglaze with the Vin Santo and scrape the bottom well with a wooden spoon, since the best flavor lies there; when the smell of alcohol fades and a sweet aroma remains, you are ready for the next step.
4. Pour in the broth, lower the heat, cover halfway and simmer gently for 15 minutes. The livers should become tender and the sauce remain slightly brothy, not dry: if it reduces too much, add a ladle of hot broth. In the last 2 minutes, stir in the capers and the chopped anchovies, which melt away, giving deep savoriness.
5. Remove from the heat and chop with a mezzaluna, or with a few pulses of a blender, until you have a dense mixture halfway between a ragù and a pâté, rustic and not smooth like a cream. Taste: add the remaining salt (about 2 g) and pepper in small amounts, since the anchovies and capers have already contributed their share. If the liver tastes a little heavy, a dash more vinegar or Vin Santo will brighten it.
6. Toast the bread slices on a grill or in the oven at 200°C for 3-4 minutes per side, until golden and crisp outside but still soft inside. Spread the warm mixture on the hot toast and serve immediately: the contrast between crisp and creamy lasts only a few minutes. Before serving, taste one crostino and adjust the salt or pepper of the rest.