Rabbit Stew with Salt and Pepper Dumplings #FoodieReads

So, I guess someone who reads my kitchen blog strenuously objects to me sharing a rabbit recipe for Easter (Braised Rabbit with Fennel and Salsa Verde). I thought it was funny - and so did my boys. Besides, it was delicious. I didn't suggest she serve it and tell her kids it was the Easter Bunny. 

But it did make me realize that I hadn't blogged some other rabbit recipes that we really, really enjoyed. So, here we go. This is from one of the Enthusiastic Kitchen Elf's favorite cookbooks: Heritage by Sean Brock.*

On the Page
Years ago, D became familiar with Brock through season two of Mind of a Chef. Have I mentioned how much I love my kids' choice of things to stream on Netflix? So, for his birthday one year, I ordered him this cookbook. Brock's manifesto resonates with me and with everything I want my boys to embrace about cooking and eating.

• Cook with soul - but first, get to know your soul.
• Be proud of your roots, be proud of your home, be proud of your family and its culture. That's your inspiration.
• ...Respect ingredients and the people who produce them.
• ...Buy the best that you can afford.
• Grow your own - even if it's just a rosemary bush. You'll taste the difference.
• Cook in the moment. Cook the way you're feeling, cook to suit the weather, cook with the mood, or to change your mood.
• ...Listen to your tongue. It's smart.
• ...Never stop researching and seeking knowledge in the kitchen.
• Cooking should make you happy. ...

Not only do I love his philosophy, but his recipes are delicious and his presentation beautiful.  Think charred beef short ribs with glazed carrots, beer-battered soft shell crabs, butter bean chowchow, and cornbread and buttermilk soup. Our Low-Country Boil is Brock-inspired!

On the Plate
Whenever D wants to make something "Southern", he peruses the pages of this book. One day, D excitedly asked if we could make rabbit stew for dinner. We used Brock's recipe as a starting point, opting to make drop buttermilk biscuits instead of pre-baking them. But we were duly inspired by the stew in Heritage.

Ingredients

Rabbit

• 1-1/2 to 2 pound rabbit
• olive oil
• 2 C celery, chopped
• 2 C onion, peeled and diced
• 2 C carrots, chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• sprig of fresh thyme
• water and/or chicken stock
• 1/2 C red wine
• chopped parsley for garnish

Dumplings

• 2 C flour
• 4 t baking powder
• 1 T organic granulated sugar
• 1 t freshly ground salt
• 1/2 t freshly ground pepper
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 C buttermilk
• 1/4 C butter, melted

Procedure

Rabbit

Brown the rabbit in a splash of olive oil in the bottom of a Dutch oven. Cook it for 2 minutes on each side to get a nice brown color. Add in the rest of the ingredients, except the parsley, and bring it to a boil. Cover and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook for 2 hours. 

Remove the rabbit from the liquid and let it cool enough that you can handle it. Pull the meat from the bone and reserve the bones for making stock. Return the shredded meat to the pot and bring it back to a simmer. In the meantime, make the dumpling batter.

Dumplings

Combine dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Combine eggs, buttermilk, and melted butter in a medium mixing bowl. Fold liquid ingredients into dry ingredients to form a stiff batter. Drop batte3r by the tablespoon into simmering stew. Cover and simmer 20 minutes.

Serve hot, garnished with chopped parsley.

  *This blog currently has a partnership with Amazon.com in their affiliate program, which gives me a small percentage of sales if you buy a product through a link on my blog. It doesn't cost you anything more. If you are uncomfortable with this, feel free to go directly to Amazon.com and search for the item of your choice.

Here's what everyone else read in March 2018: here.