Mr. Hawthorne is fixing rabbit tonight for dinner.
As a rule, rabbit is fairly expensive here,
running about $6-8/pound.
Mr. Hawthorne always checks out the
expiration dates on the packs of rabbit at Harris Teeter.
We buy the rabbits on the day of expiration
for a much reduced price - usually under $2/pound.
And the grocery stores THROW OUT rabbit past its
expiration date.
ACCCCCCKKKKK!!!
Mr. Hawthorne made a seasoned flour
to dredge the rabbit pieces in.
Hot Hungarian paprika.
Lawry's seasoning salt.
Black pepper.
He soaked the rabbit pieces in buttermilk
for a while.
I'll be in charge of a giblet gravy.
Little bit of vegetable oil in the pan,
then swirl in some butter for extra flavor.
Dredge the rabbit pieces in the seasoned flour mixture
and shake off the excess.
Place in hot oil over medium low heat
and fry for about 12-15 minutes each side.
Ooooh. That's purty.
Drain on paper towels.
Ingredients for my gravy:
giblets
cream
Dijon mustard
sour cream
creme fraiche
ricotta
scallion
basil
I sliced the scallions
and chiffonaded my basil.
Melt butter, add chopped giblets,
and lightly saute.
Cook scallions about a minute.
Add in cream - about 1/3 cup.
I had about 1/4 cup of creme fraiche.
I was going to supplement this with
more sour cream, but when I opened
the sour cream container,
I found Ranch Dressing in it - not sour cream.
About a tablespoon of mustard.
About 1/2 cup ricotta.
It needed a little more cream.
Heat through
and add some basil at the end.
Save some of the basil for garnish.
Almost forgot the wine.
About 1/3 cup.
Sprinkle rabbit with basil.
Here's my giblet cream sauce.
Now, what else are the Hawthornes
serving with the rabbit?
If you guessed Moreovers,
you would be correct.
The other morning,
we had grits for breakfast
and had some leftover.
Spread 'em out in a shallow, buttered dish.
Cover with buttered plastic wrap.
Mr. Hawthorne daintily
evened it out.
Love the pinkie, Mr. H.
Refrigerate for later use.
Melt some butter and add in the grits.
Press down to get a thin layer.
Flip when nicely browned.
Here's Mr. Hawthorne's new favorite thing:
He cooked cauliflower until tender.
Added milk.
And blended away.
All it needs is a little butter, salt, and pepper.
You think you're getting ready to take a bite
of mashed potatoes,
but ... SURPRISE.
It ain't 'taters.
I still had my orange/pineapple sauce
which I used on my pork tenderloins
and my Basmati brown and wild rice blend
from this meal.
So I mixed in the sauce with the rice
for Round 2 of Moreovers.
And here's our dinner:
Crispy fried rabbit.
Mustard/wine/cream giblet sauce
with the brightness of basil.
Crunchy on the outside, creamy on the inside grits.
Brown and wild rice with orange/pineapple flavoring.
Creamy, buttery cauliflower.
Fwied wabbit with mustard basil cream sauce.
Multi-textured grit cake.
Pureed cauliflower and wild and brown rice blend
with pineapple and orange additions.
You must admit -
that's some beautiful fwied wabbit.
MOJO back.
Hm, have never seen rabbit at our local grocery stores here. Please tell; what does the meat taste like? I have always wondered.
ReplyDeleteI have never seen Rabbit at Harris Teeter. Which one do you get it at?
ReplyDeleteI have never seen Rabbit for sale at Harris Teeter. Which one do you get it at?
ReplyDeleteAnony, I got this particular rabbit at the HT in Kill Devil Hills. Go past the fresh meats and they're in the frozen case in a box.
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite meats, and the recipe looks stupendous. I sometimes make a very similar thing, but smother the browned rabbit in the sauce and bake until it is super tender. Kind of a rabbit tetrazinni seved on top of pasta. They even have rabbit at Kroger if you look hard.
ReplyDelete