This recipe combination from The Examiner is practical for couples or for those who have a couple rabbits available to throw on the grill but aren’t sure what to do with all the meat. Making risotto can be a tedious task and you want to pay close attention to the rice. The liquid must be added slowly, then allowed to completely absorb into the rice before you add more liquid.

Grilled Rabbit with Rosemary & Thyme

Ingredients

• 1 whole young rabbit (2-3 pounds), cut into 6 pieces
• Salt & pepper, to taste
• 3/4 cup of olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic
• 3 short sprigs rosemary
• 3 short sprigs thyme
• more salt and pepper
• Wood chips for grilling, if desired

Directions

1. One hour before grilling, liberally salt and pepper rabbit pieces. Soak wood chips, if desired.
2. Heat grill. Meanwhile, prepare marinade by blending olive oil, garlic, herbs, and salt & pepper. Brush rabbit with olive oil marinade and sear on hot grill.
3. Reduce heat to 300 with the lid down and grill for about 1 hour, brushing with marinade and turning over every 15 minutes.  Use probe thermometer and follow temp standards of doneness for beef.  (It will appear to be done long before it actually is. )

Grilled Rabbit and Mushroom Risotto

Ingredients

Making your own stock:

• 3 cups vegetable broth
• 2 cups water
• rabbit meat pulled from two or three pieces
• bones from the rabbit
• 1 clove garlic, smashed

The Risotto

• 1 T butter
• 1 shallot, diced
• 1/2 cup mushrooms, chopped
• 1 1/2 cups arborio rice
• 1/2 cup dry red wine
• 10 dried cherries, diced
• 2 sprigs thyme
• shaved parmesan cheese

Directions

For the stock:

1. Pull rabbit meat from leftover carcass.
2. Pour vegetable stock and water into medium pot. Add bones and garlic. Bring to a boil, then turn down to low heat.

For the risotto:

1. Heat butter over medium heat in a large skillet and add shallots.  Saute about 5 minutes, then add in the mushrooms.  After a couple more minutes, push everything to the sides and add rice. Mix through and let the rice soak up some of those flavors, then add the red wine.  Cook about 3 minutes. Add cherries.
2. Mix in the broth 1/2 cup at a time, stirring it in over the course of 20-30 minutes.
3. After the rice cooks another 15-20 minutes, add 2 sprigs of thyme and the rabbit. Test the rice, and when it reaches the softness you like, remove the thyme. Serve with shaved paremesan and a pinch of grey salt or sea salt.

Fricassée de Lapin du Thyme (Casseroled Rabbit with Thyme)

This recipe was adapted from “French Delicious Cuisine Made Easy” (Hermes House; 2003) by Carole Clements and Elizabeth Wolf-Cohen.

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 3 pounds rabbit, cut into eight pieces
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 cup red wine
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, finely chopped
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 3 teaspoons Dijon mustard

Directions

1. Put flour, seasoned with salt and pepper, in a plastic bag and lightly dredge the rabbit in the flour mixture.
2. Melt butter with olive oil over medium-high heat in a large flameproof casserole.
3. Add rabbit and cook until golden brown. Add wine and boil for a minute, then add enough stock to cover the meat.
4. Add herbs and garlic and simmer gently, covered, for 1 hour or until the rabbit becomes tender. Stir in mustard and serve rabbit and sauce with rice or mashed potatoes.

Pair this dish with one of the following soft, fruity wines which will complement the dish well:

• 2005 Albada Garnacha Viñas Viejas, Calatayud, Spain ($12.99): This red wine offers plum and peppery aromas with ripe black cherry and black pepper flavors, with a soft yet spicy finish.  Highly recommended.
• 2005 Priest Ranch Zinfandel, Napa Valley, California (on sale $12.99): A spicy red wine with black raspberry flavors. Recommended.
• 2004 Château Valcombe “Paul Jeune” Côtes du Ventoux , France ($15.99): A dry but fruity wine, plum and berry flavors are apparent with an earthy undertone. Recommended.
  

Italian-style Rabbit Skewers

Ingredients

• 1 large Rabbit (about 3 1/2 pounds)
• Salt & pepper, to taste
• 1 parsley sprig, finely chopped
• 1 rosemary sprig, finely chopped
• 1/4 pound Parma ham, thinly sliced (12 slices)
• 12 sage leaves
• 6 small Italian sausages
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 6 skewers (If using wood be sure to soak them in water for 30 minutes before grilling)

Directions

1. Bone the rabbit carefully, keeping the pieces of meat as large as possible. Wipe down the rabbit meat with a damp cloth or rinse it then pat dry with paper towels. Cut rabbit meat into 12 even-sized pieces then lay them out and flatten them slightly.
2. Season rabbit with salt, pepper, parsley and rosemary. Put a slice of ham on each slice of rabbit and roll up tightly.
3. Thread 1 rabbit/ham roll, 1 sage leaf, 1 sausage, another rabbit roll and another sage leaf onto each skewer. Brush skewer ingredients with oil and place on charcoal grill. Rack should be as close as possible to the heat source. Turn the skewers occasionally, each time brushing with oil. Alternatively, the skewers can be baked in a slow oven at 350 degrees F for one hour.

Hope you have a wonderful Fourth of July weekend!

Rabbit Kabobs

INGREDIENTS

• Cooked rabbit meat, cut into chunks
• Bacon to wrap rabbit
• Cherry tomatoes
• Green bell peppers, cut into chunks
• Pineapple, cut into chunks
• Small whole mushrooms or large ones cut into chunks
• Pearl onions
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons vinegar
• 1 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Prepare skewers one day ahead of time. Alternate meat chunks with vegetables on the skewers.
2. Combine sauce ingredients. Place skewers in a plastic container or resealable bag and pour marinade over them. Marinate in fridge overnight.
3. Grill rabbit skewers over hot coals for 15 minutes, turning periodically.

Slow Grilled Honey Rabbit

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 3/4 cup vinegar (try out different kinds for new flavors – apple cider, white wine, tarragon, lime and chili, etc)
• 1 cup honey
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 fryer-sized rabbit, cut into portions

DIRECTIONS

1. Melt butter in a small saucepan. Stir in vinegar, honey, Worcestershire sauce and salt. Heat through until thoroughly combined.
2. Set grill rack to highest level for lowest heat. Place rabbit on rack. Turn rabbit frequently, basting with sauce often. Grill/smoke 1 to 1 1/2 hours until rabbit has a golden color and is tender.

TIP: Don’t use a cleaver when portioning the rabbit but a really sharp chef’s knife (or similar.) A cleaver could splinter the bones as you chop through them.

1. Separate the front legs from the rib cage.
2. Cut across the back at the end of the ribs and separate it into two equal halves by splitting along the backbone.
3. Leave the center loin in one large piece.
4. Cut the backbone between the two rear legs and remove it from loin section.

Larger carcasses can be cut into twelve pieces by cutting each hind leg piece into two pieces, the loins and back portion of the ribs into five pieces, and the front portion of the ribs and each of the front legs into one serving each.

Take a look at a few photos of the process here.

Rabbit Pie

INGREDIENTS

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 rosemary sprig
• 3 sage leaves
• 4 garlic cloves
• 2 pounds boneless rabbit meat, cut into small pieces
• Flour, for dusting rabbit
• 1 cup dry white wine
• Pinch fresh ground nutmeg
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 2 cups chopped, peeled tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons pine nuts
• Uncooked pie crust
• Egg, beaten

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large sauté pan, heat some oil over medium heat; add whole bay leaves, rosemary, sage and garlic. Stir until garlic is golden; be careful not to burn. Remove herbs and garlic and set aside in a small dish.
2. Dust rabbit in flour. Increase heat to high and add rabbit meat to pan; sauté until golden. Add wine and season with pepper, nutmeg and salt; let simmer for one minute, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Stir in chopped tomatoes, herbs, garlic and pine nuts. Reduce heat to low, cover the pan and gently simmer stew for 20 to 30 minutes, or until the rabbit pieces are no longer pink in the center.
3. If the sauce is thin, transfer meat to a serving dish and cover to keep warm. Simmer the remaining sauce over high heat until it is slightly thickened; remove and discard bay leaves and return rabbit to the sauce.
4. To make the pie: Spoon rabbit stew mixture into either a large pie dish or smaller dishes if you wish to make multiple portions. Cut pastry into the required size(s). Brush edges of the dish(es) with beaten egg. (This will seal the pastry to the dish.) Carefully place the pastry on top. Cut a small hole in the pastry to allow steam to escape and bake at 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) until pastry is golden brown.

If you’re butchering your own rabbits, you can actually give it a try using rabbit’s blood as a thickener. Quite honestly, I’m not sure I would be brave enough. It’s a rather involved recipe but I imagine all the work will be worth it in the end. Anything that takes lots of time to prepare has always tasted awesome in our house.

Civet de Lapin à la Française (Rabbit Stew with Red Wine)

SERVES 6

A French civet is normally a winter dish made with hare. It is cooked in red wine and the sauce is traditionally thickened with the animal’s blood, which gives the civet its characteristic colour and taste. A simpler year-round civet can be made with rabbit, marinated overnight in an aromatic mixture of wine, garlic and peppercorns. Even without the blood, this stew has a mildly gamey taste and is best served with a rich red wine either from Burgundy or the Côtes du Rhône.

INGREDIENTS

• 1.75 kg (3.5 lb) rabbit

MARINADE

• 1 medium carrot, sliced
• 1 medium onion, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 whole cloves
• 20 peppercorns
• 1 Bouquet Garni
• 1 litre (1.75 pints) dry red wine
• 45 ml (3 tbsp) cognac
• 15 ml (1 tbsp) vegetable oil
• 100 g (3.5 oz) butter
• 45 ml (3 tbsp) flour
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 kg (2 lb) waxy potatoes (red or white)
• 36 pickling onions
• 15 ml (1 tbsp) sugar
• 150 g (5 oz) green unsmoked bacon, sliced 1 cm (1/4 inch) thick
• 15 ml (1 tbsp) vegetable oil
• 225 g (8 oz) button ov quartered large mushrooms, trimmed

CROÛTONS

• 3 sliced day-old white bread, crusts removed
• 30 g (1 oz) buttr, melted
• 45 ml (3 tbsp) chopped parsley

DIRECTIONS

1. Cut the rabbit into serving pieces (see technique photographs). Put the pieces into a non-aluminium container with all of the marinade ingredients except the oil, then drizzle the oil over the top. Leave the rabbit to marinate for at least 12 hours, or overnight.
2. Preheat the oven to 220 C (425 F) mark 7.
3. Remove the rabbit pieces from the marinade and pat dry with paper towels. Strain the marinade; reserve the liquid and the vegetables separately. Heat 45 g (1.5 oz) butter in a heavy flameproof casserole over high heat. Add the rabbit pieces and cook until golden brown on all sides. Transfer to a shallow dish. Add the marinated vegetables to the casserole and cook over high heat until lightly browned. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Whisk in the marinade and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer the marinade for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Return the rabbit pieces to the casserole, season with salt and pepper and cook in the oven for about 45 minutes, until the pieces are tender when pierced with a knife.
4. Meanwhile, turn and boil the potatoes à l’anglaise. Meanwhile, keep warm in the cooking liquid.
5. Peel and glaze the pickling onions with 15 g (1/2 oz) butter, a pinch of salt and the sugar. Cover to keep warm.
6. Cut the bacon into lardons; blanch and drain. Heat 15 ml (1 tbsp) oil and 30 g (1 oz) butter in a frying pan over high heat. Add the blanched lardons and cook until crisp and golden. Drain and add to the pan with the onions.
7. Heat 30 g (1 oz) butter in the pan used for the lardons. Add the mushrooms and cook over high heat until the moisture has evaporated and the mushrooms are golden. Add to the pan with the onions and the lardons.
8. Prepare the croûtons: cut each slice of bread in half to form 2 triangles. Brush each triangle on both sides with melted butter and arrange on a baking sheet. Toast in the oven until golden; set aside.
9. When the rabbit is tender, remove from the oven. Transfer the rabbit pieces to a bowl. Strain the cooking liquid, pressing down on the solids to extract the liquid; discard the solids. Return the strained liquid to the casserole, bring to the boil, and reduce over medium heat until thickened Return the rabbit, along with the onions, lardons and mushrooms to the casserole and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
10. To serve, transfer the rabbit, onions, lardons and mushrooms to a large serving platter with a slotted spoon. Dip one end of each croûton into the sauce and then into the chopped parsley and arrange around the edge of the platter. Spoon the sauce over the rabbit and vegetables. Serve with the boiled potatoes.

Note: Pressure cookers can vary and you should follow the directions which accompanied your own pressure canner step-by-step.

DIRECTIONS

1. Soak dressed rabbits in water/salt mixture (use 1 tablespoon salt per quart water) for 1 hour.
2. Rinse and remove excess fat. Cut into serving size pieces.
3. Boil, steam, or bake to medium done. Rabbit is medium done when pink color in center is almost gone.
4. Pack hot rabbit pieces loosely in clean, hot Mason jars, leaving 1 1/4-inch head-space.
5. Cover rabbit with boiling broth or water leaving 1 1/4-inch head-space.
6. Wipe rim of jar to ensure a clean seal and screw on lids.
7. Process per instructions below.

Dial Gauge Canner—Process at 11 pounds pressure.
With Bone – Pints 65 minutes and Quarts for 75 minutes.
Without Bone – Pints 75 minutes and Quarts for 90 minutes.
For processing above 2,000 feet altitude, see chart for recommended pounds of pressure.

Weighted Gauge Canner—Process at 10 pounds pressure.
With Bone – Pints 65 minutes and Quarts for 75 minutes.
Without Bone – Pints 75 minutes and Quarts for 90 minutes.
For processing above 1,000 feet altitude, see chart for recommended pounds of pressure.

ALTITUDE CHART FOR CANNING MEAT AND POULTRY

This particular recipe is fairly quick and easy. Make the basil pesto ahead of time to allow the flavors to really blend. You can save it in your fridge for up to a week.

Grilled Rabbit with Simple Basil Pesto

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

• 4 legs of rabbit, top bone of the thigh removed (ask your butcher to do this if you’re buying the meat)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 very ripe sweet tomatoes, sliced into rounds
• 1 small bunch of small-leaf purple basil
• Simple basil pesto (recipe follows)

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat grill to high-heat. Rub rabbit legs with  olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
2. When grill is hot, lay rabbit pieces on the rack and cook without turning for five minutes (rabbit should be well-browned). Turn over and cook for an additional eight minutes. The rabbit pieces should now be cooked through to the bone. Remove and let rest for a few minutes.
3. Season tomatoes with salt and pepper, drizzle with basil pesto and place cooked rabbit on top. Spoon over a little more pesto, and scatter with purple basil. Serve immediately.

Simple Basil Pesto

INGREDIENTS

• 3 large bunches of basil
• 1 clove of garlic, peeled
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 200ml/7fl oz extra-virgin olive oil

DIRECTIONS

1. Pull basil leaves from their stalks and put them into a food processor with garlic and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Process until the basil is finely chopped.
2. With the motor still running, very slowly add in the extra-virgin olive oil and continue to blend until you have a smooth, moss-green purée.
3. Leave to stand for a few minutes, then taste and adjust the seasoning. Pour into a jar, cover and refrigerate until ready to use.