The arrival at the coast was occasion for wonderment of many kinds -- the joy of diving into bracingly cool water, and also of enjoying boned stuffed rabbit afterwords. This is my mother-in-law's recipe, which will also work well with boned chicken (pictured here), and (we think) with turkey breast. In summer it's excellent served cool, whereas it's nice hot when it's cold outside. To serve 4-6, you'll need:
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 cleaned, skinned rabbit, weighing about 2 1/2 pounds, boned (discard the head too)
- 1/2 cup vinegar
- The leaves of an 8-inch (20 cm) sprig of rosemary
- A quarter pound (or perhaps a little more) sliced ham
- A carrot
- 7 or 8 pitted black olives, minced
- Salt & pepper
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- Boiling water
- The juice of a lemon, or 1/4 cup dry white wine
- ** When Stuffing a Chicken Graziella Increases The Stuffing **
- 3/4 pound (300 g) sliced ham -- not 1/4 pound
- 1 pound (450 g) ground beef
- 1/4 pound (100 g) Mortadella di bologna
- 1/4 cup shelled pistachio nuts
Preparation:
Soak the rabbit for several hours in a couple of quarts of water acidulated with the vinegar (if you're using boned chicken (see how to bone a chicken if need be) this step is not necessary).
Pat the rabbit dry, flatten it out, and season it with salt, pepper, and the rosemary leaves. Lay the ham over the meat, sprinkle it with the olives, place the carrot along one edge, and roll the meat up around the carrot. Tie it with butcher's twine, season it with salt and pepper, and brown it on all sides in the olive oil. Add enough boiling water to come half way up the meat and simmer, uncovered, turning occasionally. When the water has evaporated almost entirely turn it this way and that to brown it on all sides. Then sprinkle it with the lemon juice or wine and transfer it to a serving dish.
Whisk the drippings left in the bottom of the pan, slice the meat, and pour the drippings over the slices. Serve with a zesty red wine, for example a Bardolino or a Chianti d'annata, or a fruity white wine, for example a Vernaccia di San Gimignano or a Fiano.
Pat the rabbit dry, flatten it out, and season it with salt, pepper, and the rosemary leaves. Lay the ham over the meat, sprinkle it with the olives, place the carrot along one edge, and roll the meat up around the carrot. Tie it with butcher's twine, season it with salt and pepper, and brown it on all sides in the olive oil. Add enough boiling water to come half way up the meat and simmer, uncovered, turning occasionally. When the water has evaporated almost entirely turn it this way and that to brown it on all sides. Then sprinkle it with the lemon juice or wine and transfer it to a serving dish.
Whisk the drippings left in the bottom of the pan, slice the meat, and pour the drippings over the slices. Serve with a zesty red wine, for example a Bardolino or a Chianti d'annata, or a fruity white wine, for example a Vernaccia di San Gimignano or a Fiano.
