Last week, I came across this article about a German immigrant who had brought his grandmothers traditions (and recipes) with him to America…and to this day he still enjoys a great Hasenpfeffer, sauerkraut and bread dumplings for Easter dinner. Hasenpfeffer is a sort of stew that requires you to brine the rabbit for 2-3 days in a blend of water, vinegar, vegetables and spices. Then on the day of cooking, you need a bit more time and effort…but seriously, it’s worth it. And I always appreciate recipes where you work a bit, then rest, then work a little more, work a bit and finally can DEVOUR!

Personally, I would probably skip the sauerkraut (although fresh, homemade sauerkraut is an awesome thing) and serve this with red cabbage and bread dumplings instead. It’s only a small change and it could possibly make a huge difference; but sauerkraut can really  wreak havoc with your digestion at times — so the last thing I want to be serving at Easter is something that will send everyone racing for the bathrooms at once!

Ok, ok. I know this is not exactly a recipe using rabbit meat — but it would definitely make a cute addition to your dinner table for Easter, regardless of what main dish and sides that you’re serving along with it!

In her article on Bites on Today, Donna Currie goes into detail about how tricky it was to get this right. What she thought would be a no-brainer in baking turned out to be rather complicated.

Bunny-shaped bread sounded like a simple, yet brilliant idea. What could be so hard? Well, a lot of things. The first year I made it, I was very pleased with the shape of the bunny when it went into the oven, but apparently the oven was possessed. While a bunny went in, it wasn’t a bunny that came out.

As my husband so eloquently put it, “Why did you make gargoyle bread?”

I’ve honestly never made something quite this advanced when it comes to bread. And it seems that when I make it, I often end up with a perfect loaf once and then every other time I make the bread, still following the recipe exactly, something just goes wrong. The dough doesn’t rise as it should or it doesn’t cook all the way in the middle. Although I love bread, we are not always on the best of terms.

But hopefully your forays into bread baking are not as shaky as mine…and since this is a bit like baking a few different rolls together at once, I’m hoping it will go a lot better!

Go directly to the recipe on Series Eats.

If you’re wondering what sort of cute things you can put on the table for Easter, how about some adorable origami rabbits that you can dress up your table with, surprise the kids with in their Easter baskets, or even use as name cards for your big dinner. All you need is some cute paper (or have the kids color some paper and use that instead) and a marker to draw on the face. It doesn’t get much easier…

 Because they’re so easy to make, I find the process is pretty addictive and made a little family in a matter of minutes.

Display somewhere festive, hide them around the house, or plant them in funny spots around the neighborhood where friends might find them.

I have to admit — sometimes folding origami makes me a bit uptight and antsy. But I mean seriously — how cute are these? And with something like 10-15 folds, you should be able to teach the kids how to do this in no time. I’d personally also keep the idea around for kid’s parties as something you can add to adorn gift bags or just have sitting out to look cute!

Ok enough. Just go check out the recipe. My mouth is watering too much while I write this. Be sure to check out the wine suggestion too!

(c) Henry Harris, chef-proprietor, Racine, London

Perhaps if you’re looking for something special to serve around Easter, this would be a tasty dish to whip up. So glad that this catering business site shared it.

Now if you just read that delicious-looking recipe and wondered what in the world a “rasher” is — it’s actually just a thin slice of bacon or ham. Yep, I had to google that one. So not only did you get a yummy new rabbit recipe to try out, but you also learned a new word.

There’s a few theories about how the Easter of today evolved; but I really like this suggestion about why the Easter bunny actually lays eggs:

It may have simply arisen from confusion of symbolism but, like much of the holiday of Easter itself; it could be a direct heritage from older traditions. In Germanic and Slavic languages, the word “Easter” comes from an ancient pagan goddess of the spring named Eostre. According to legend, Eostre once saved a bird whose wings had frozen during the winter by turning it into a rabbit. Because the rabbit had once been a bird, it could still lay eggs, and that rabbit became the modern Easter Bunny.

Read the full article here.

Somehow, that notion is just far more romantic and special than just trying to make something up when your kids put you on the spot. Because obviously a rabbit has very little to do with the crucifixion of Christ, or His resurrection.

There’s a few more ideas in the article about why we color eggs and the symbolism that stands behind them. What are you thoughts about why we have the rabbit at Easter? Have you read other theories about where all these traditions developed?

You’re driving down the road, and parked on the side is a car with a few cardboard boxes on the ground. You get out and find that it’s filled with the cutest, fuzziest little bunnies that you’ve ever seen.

But don’t be fooled; just because they look cute and cuddly now does not mean they are the ideal new pet for your kids.

Anyone with any experience raising rabbits knows that it’s a bad idea to buy a rabbit on a whim. In fact, it’s a lot like buying a puppy or kitten at Christmas. These animals need someone responsible looking after them, and a rabbit even more so than other animals which you’d have more contact with daily. Since your rabbits are silent and will be in a cage most of the time, they can’t protest when you forgot their breakfast or need to have their cages cleaned.

And the most alarming issue is that people would just set these animals free in the wild. A domesticated rabbit that has been dependent on humans for food and protection will not last long at all in the wilderness. You’re essentially sending that animal off to become dinner for a larger predator, because that rabbit isn’t going to have a clue about how to hide, dig a burrow or where to look for food.

“They’re so cute, but rabbits are high-maintenance animals,” said Doreen Reynolds-Consolati, a volunteer with The House Rabbit Connection. “And sometimes, people buy them for their kids, and after a few weeks, they’re not fun anymore.”

Some parents then release the animals into the woods.

“And when you let a rabbit out into the wild, you haven’t set it free,” said another volunteer, Claire Bosma. “You’ve signed its death warrant.”

Read the full article about why bunnies make bad Easter gifts here.

If you’re breeding rabbits and considering selling them for the Easter holiday, be responsible and make sure the families taking your buns know they are getting in to before they finalize the purchase! And if you were thinking about picking up a rabbit, duck, chick or any other super cute little baby critter for Easter, give some consideration to what you’ll do with the critter once it’s grown out of the cute phase…and if you can raise it until it would be ready for slaughter. Chances are, you’re better off just leaving the little guys where they are.

When building your cages, keep in mind that rabbits need about 1 square foot of space for every pound that they weigh. Examples:

• Small breeds —2 1/2 x 2 1/2 ft. = 6 1/4 sq. ft.
• Medium breeds—2 1/2 x 3 ft. = 71/2 sq. ft.
• Large breeds—2 1/2 x 4 ft. = 10 sq. ft. with at least 18 inches of head room.

Don’t crowd your doe into a small cage that will be overflowing when 8-10 bunnies join her. The place will fill up fast!  Also ensure that you can get your hands on the rabbit wherever it may try to hide in the cage. If it is too deep, the rabbit will run to the far corner out of your reach! Making the cage longer, not wider, will allow you easier access. Adult rabbits should always have their own cages to keep tensions low.

Twelve-gauge wire is recommend for rabbits, but 14-gauge will often get the job done just fine. As 24 Carrot Rabbitry figured out, 16-gauge, especially for floors, is not your friend.

Don’t use 16-gauge floors. They bow between J-clips, and the whole floor bows, giving you even less cleaning clearance. We even had one wire break. We didn’t have problems just in growout cages, but even in the buck’s cage. It’s just not strong enough, unless maybe you’re raising dwarf rabbits.

Poultry mesh is not suitable for cages because the rabbits may chew on it, injuring their teeth. They may also find ways to pry underneath it with their nose, freeing themselves.

View a great list of 5 things to keep in mind about rabbit cages that the folks at 24 Carrot Rabbitry learned after building their first rabbitry just one-and-a-half years ago. They also mention some great information about rabbitry housing suppliers and who they’d recommend doing business with.

You can also check out their entire renovation process which really was very involved. But I’m sure all that hard work is going to pay off. And how cute are their rabbits?!

As reported by GlobalPost:

Til was due to meet the public at a press conference on Thursday. A TV crew was invited to get some shots of him the day before, the Bild newspaper reported, which is when disaster struck: a cameraman took a step backwards while filming in Til’s enclosure, and trod directly on him.

“Everyone here is upset,” zoo director Uwe Dempewolf told the Spiegel, adding that the cameraman was “distraught.”

Til, the earless rabbit

This little guy really was quite adorable. It’s a shame that he met such a horrible fate. But his legacy may live on, since the Limbach-Oberfronha Zoo in lower Saxony (Germany) is considering having his body stuffed.

Read the full article at GlobalPost.

Also keep in mind that when spring approaches and there are constant changes in the weather, your rabbits are likely to start shedding before the last major frost is gone. So make sure that you keep an eye on your rabbits during these fluctuations, and remove extra bedding over the day if necessary to prevent them from burrowing into something too warm.

Rabbits do not sweat like humans. In fact, if you ever see your rabbit panting or appearing to sweat in hot weather, it is in serious trouble and must be cooled down. Rabbits regulate their body temperature through the ears, via the tiny veins that run close to the surface of the ear. That is why there is generally not much fur on the ears, so heat can escape through the blood as it passes through the thin ears. Rabbits with smaller ears are at higher risk of overheating in temperatures over 80°F.

It is also normal for reproduction to considerably slow down during warm months, especially if it remains over 85° for 4 days or more. The bucks begin to have fertility issues at that point.

Water is also important during hot weather to keep your rabbit hydrated. Rabbits will naturally consume more water as well as food during warm periods so that they can regulate body temperature. Place ice cubes in water bowls or bottles…or place frozen water bottles into the colony for the rabbits to lay on or next to. Just make sure they don’t start eating the bottles or lids.

Make sure that food remains dry and clean. During high humidity days, the feed may become damp and in turn may start to mold or mildew. This can be toxic to your rabbits, causing illness or even death.  You can also feed your rabbits a few frozen vegetables so that they are remaining well fed while also helping themselves stay cool.

It is also important to keep the stress level of your rabbits as low as possible at this point. Don’t handle them unless it is necessary and keep other animals away from the colony as well.

Take a look at this chart on the nutritional values of rabbit meat and other popular meats:

Rabbit meat is so healthy and lean that some doctors actually prescribe a rabbit meat diet to people who are overweight and obese. Because the fat and calorie levels are so low, but protein so high, one can radically change their life by eating a rabbit meat diet and exercising.

Does that mean that it would be healthy to eat only rabbit meat all the time with no additional other foods? Actually no. Because rabbit meat is so lean, your body can actually suffer if you eat nothing but rabbit meat all the time because it does not contain enough fat. So the good news is, you’re encouraged to eat other foods that you might not otherwise get to eat because of their fat content — thanks to rabbit meat!