Duck Liver Mousse and Grilled Dates Comprise the Perfect Fall Bite at Helen

When an importer sent Helen’s Chef/Co-Owner Rob McDaniel fresh Medjool dates last spring, it was right around the same time he was looking for an outlet for byproducts of the Birmingham, Ala. restaurant’s half-duck entrée. “We’d never worked with fresh dates, only dried, and the sugar content seemed perfect to pair with the extra livers from our duck,” says the chef. McDaniel decided to grill the dates over hardwood coals until blistered (about 20 minutes on high). From there he made a classic duck liver mousse with shallots and thyme and a splash of bourbon. “Down here in the South, liver usually comes crispy, and there’s nothing wrong with that. But when liver mousse is made correctly with no metallic flavor, I really love it,” he says. To add crunch and a base for the date/mousse combo, he made a pistachio butter, blanching, crushing, and blitzing the pistachios in a Vita-Prep (a Pacojet wouldn’t quite cut it) with water to emulsify. They started out adding the butter inside the date, but moved it to the bottom of the plate, building the bite with a grilled date, piped mousse, and a final garnish of a cava vinegar-pickled blackberry (a pickled persimmon works too) and spruce tips. “The end result is bite of explosive flavor—the grilled dates share a delicate smoke that pairs well with the velvet-y duck liver mousse, while the pistachio butter provides a base and some texture, and the blackberry rounds things out with a touch of fruity acid,” says McDaniel who serves them as a starter trio or private party hors d’œuvre for the holidays. 

Liz Grossman is the editor of Plate.