Hi guys,
I'm a foodie wannabe- read all the food blogs, and watch all the TV shows, but I don't spend too much time cooking. So Saturday is my wife's birthday, and I went and bought some Hudson Valley foie gras to try out- I've never made it before so I am hoping that I can get a basic recipe that will work out. I don't have the equipment for sous vide either (not a big surprise!). Please help me out and hopefully I can post some pictures of it later.
 

Cooking Foie IMO is a pretty simple process. Because it is awesome by itself, you won't need to fuss too much on adding things to the make it better. Depending on the Foie, you might want to soak it overnight in milk or buttermilk to draw out impurities. Then you'll want to separate the lobe at its natural separation potions, find as many of the veins as you can and pull them out but be careful to try and keep it somewhat intact. Good news is that it's really pliable, similar to play-dough, and takes to easy remolding by hand. Try to mold it as even as you can for easy slicing. At this point cut out about 1.5-2 OZ medallions (about an inch or so thick) and heat up a thick bottomed pan. Score the medallions in a cross-hatch pattern for nice look when cooked, don't score too deep though.  

When the pan is really hot, lightly salt (Koshier, Fleur de Sel) the foie and use a regular amount of pepper. Then, salt the pan bottom liberally (this will prevent the foie from sticking to the pan bottom as it cooks super quick). Sear the medallions maybe 20-30 seconds on each side. This is where the skill comes in, most restaurants will serve you black, burnt foie, the trick IMO is to get it a nice rich caramelized brown. Trial and error thing but since you're only making it for 2 people, it'll be easier to pull off versus a restaurant setting. The medallions will leach out an incredible amount of fat, hence why you only salt the pan and don't oil it. Make sure you save that stuff, its gold next time you want to sauté something like a piece of fish, meat or veg and will last for a long, long time in the fridge. Maybe use to oil pan for eggs in your morning of triumph next day... As you pull from pan, land them on a paper towel real quick to degrease a little and serve immediately. Good luck!