But what is pate?

My husband and I host an annual wine tasting party in our home. At these events I always serve a few simple hors d'oeuvres; taco dip, crackers and cheese, meatballs and stuffed mushrooms. Our friend Joe always compliments my choice of appetizers by saying that he doesn't need those fancy appetizers, like chicken pate. He tells me this every year which leads me to believe the other wine events he attends are probably much more extravagant and that he really dislikes chicken pate.

But what is pate?
According to the Joy of Cooking by Irma S. Rombauer and Marion Rombauer Becker the pate de foie gras of Europe is produced by the force feeding of geese, which causes their livers to become marbled in appearance and so increases their bulk that they often account for 1/4 the bird’s weight. In this country the law forbids this practice, although unfatted goose liver is available.
As a matter of fact, the liver of which American pates are usually composed - that of chickens - makes a more than acceptable substitute.

A pate is nothing more than a French meat loaf that's had a couple of cocktails. - Carol Cutler