The Talk of the dinner party - this recipe is loved by people who don’t like eating Mutton Birds(as strange as not liking Mutton Birds sounds!!). It will be a talking point at all dinner parties. I guarantee it will be a hit at any wine and cheese board occasion!

Ingredients

• 1 cup finely chopped onion (1 large)
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried, crumbled
• 1 and a Half teaspoons table salt
• 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
• Half a teaspoon whole allspice
• Quarter teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 2 Bay leaf
• Half a cup of cream
• 2 large eggs
• 3 tablespoons Cognac or other brandy
• The minced up flesh, skin & fat of 2 large Mutton Birds
• 500g Pork Mince
• 400g Bacon Slices with no rind.

Preparation: Assemble and Marinate Pate:

Cook onion in butter in a large fry pan, covered, over moderately low heat, stirring frequently, until soft, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and thyme and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Transfer to a large bowl set in a bowl of ice.

While onion cools, pulse salt, peppercorns, allspice, nutmeg, and bay leaf in grinder until finely ground. Add to onion mixture and whisk in cream, eggs, and brandy until combined well.

Pulse cooked Mutton Bird meat, fat and skin in a food processor or in a bowl with a stick mixer until finely chopped, then add to onion mixture along with pork mince and mix together well with your hands or a wooden spoon.

Line bottom and long sides of the meat loaf dish crosswise with about 6 to 9 strips of bacon, arranging them close together (but not overlapping) and leaving an overhang of around 10cm. Fill meat loaf dish evenly with ground-meat mixture, Cover top of Pate lengthwise with 2 or 3 more bacon slices if necessary to cover completely, and fold overhanging ends of bacon back over these. Cover Pate with plastic wrap and chill at least 8 hours to marinate meats.

Bake Pate

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 180°C.

Discard plastic wrap and cover pate tightly with a double layer of foil.

Bake Pate in a water bath, until thermometer inserted diagonally through foil at least 10cm into center of the pate registers 90°C, for around 2 hours. Remove foil and let pate stand for 30 minutes.

Stand Pate

Chill pate in the meat loaf dish for at least at least 24 hours to allow flavors to develop.

Place Pate in a bowl and serve with crackers or pead, it will be the talk of the dinner party. Even people who don’t like Mutton Birds love this pate!!