A Winter Meal for a Fairy

Years ago I had the most delicious pasta dish at Oliveto. It is one of two pasta dishes that stand out in my mind as utter perfection. It was a cold rainy winter day but somehow I managed the 1 1/2 hour trek to Piedmont. Oliveto is one of my favorite restaurants, it is like coming home. Great food, friendly staff, and the exuberance of Chef Canales always set the stage for a memorable evening. I was pregnant at the time and my appetite was off the charts. Yes to salad, yes to the salumi platter, with a the addition of a few slices of mortadella. Their mortadella is of the melt in your mouth variety, ever so light. And all made my Chef Bertolli. And yes to anything else… But what I really wanted was a bowl of pasta. Oliveto grinds the flour for their pasta. Freshly ground flour for freshly made pasta is something to experience, especially if making pasta from different grains. So, on this cold rainy winter day pigeon liver and sage on buckwheat pasta was on the menu. That dish just rang true that evening. Hearty, earthy, dramatic, aromatic… Reflective of the weather,  a winter dish.

After a week of continued rain, which in California either sends its residents into a depressive state or hibernation, this dish came to mind. Yesterday was a very rainy day, and it also happened to be my daughters half birthday. Yes, we celebrate 1/2 birthdays. All her mates were in school or unwilling to leave their house, so no one came over for cupcakes and a playdate. But I did want to at least make a special dinner for my little girl who happens to love chicken liver and sage! Well…

Chicken Liver and Sage Pasta

• Chicken livers
• Garlic
• Fresh Sage, whole branches, and some chopped.
  
• Olive oil
• Buckwheat pasta
• Salt and plenty of black pepper

This is the simplest and quickest of dishes to prepare. A no recipe recipe. Add as little or as much as you like. Bring your pasta water to a boil, I used spaghetti noodles, and cook as instructed. Heat your saute pan with olive oil, place the peeled garlic and fresh sage bunches. Fry until garlic is brown. Remove garlic and sage. Add the chopped sage and chicken livers and a splash more of olive oil. Cook livers until evenly brown and cooked through but still soft, do not overcook! Turn heat off. Add drained pasta when ready, toss, add salt and black pepper. Serve immediately.

The dish was as I remembered. The heartiness of the buckwheat pasta is perfect for the liver, and the sage adds a sweetness and earthiness to the dish. The Fairy devoured her pasta with two hands and immensely enjoyed the company of her chicken liver loving Aunties (who, as all good aunites,  are not discouraged by rain!).  In the end, not a bad 1/2 birthday. And there was still room for chocolate cupcakes and candied ginger.