Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Combine chicken livers, anise seeds, brown sugar, Kitchen Bouquet, bay leaves, and salt. Cook gently over medium low heat until barely cooked through, about 8 minutes. Remove pan from the heat and move the chicken livers to a plate and let them cool. Keep the sauce in the pan and set it aside. Once cool enough to handle cut the livers into chunks about the same size as the water chestnuts. Lay one slice of bacon on a work surface in front of you. Place a water chestnut and a piece of liver at the end of the piece of bacon. Carefully roll the bundle until encased in the bacon. You will probably only use a half piece of bacon. Trim the bacon at that point. Use a tooth pick to secure the opening making sure to pass it through both the water chestnut and the liver and back through the other side of the bacon. Use the other half of the bacon for the next rumaki. Repeat with the rest of the pieces. One at a time return the rumaki to the pan holding the sauce. Carefully roll each rumaki in the sauce until it is well coated. Lay the rumaki bundles as you finish each one on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake in oven for 20 minutes until well browned and crisp. Serve warm.