Recipe - Lagoskounelli Fournou (Baked Hare Or Rabbit)

Karen Mintzias
1 Rabbit or hare
cleaned and skinned
2 Celery stalks, with leaves,
chopped
2 md Onions; chopped
1 Carrot; cut or sliced up
One half cup Chopped fresh parsley
1 Bay leaf; crumbled
2 Sprigs fresh rosemary
6 Peppercorns; bruised
2 cup Dry red wine
One half cup Vinegar
One fourth cup Butter or margarine
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
4 Fresh tomatoes; chopped OR
8 ounce Tomato sauce
3 Allspice berries

After washing the rabbit or hare thoroughly and cutting into serving
pieces, place in a large glass or earthenware bowl. Make a marinade by
combining the celery, onions, carrots, herbs, peppercorns, wine, and
vinegar and pouring over the meat. Cover and refrigerate for a day or two,
turning the pieces over occasionally.

On serving day, drain, reserving the marinade, and wipe dry. Transfer the
marinade to a casserole and simmer for 15 minutes. While the marinade is
cooking, heat the butter in a large frying pan, and when very hot sear the
meat over high heat until it is reddened in color without browning. Remove
from the heat, and with a spatula lift the rabbit or hare pieces into the
simmering marinade, then pour in the remaining butter. Taste for seasoning,
then add the salt and pepper, tomatoes, and allspice. Weight the meat with
a small plate to keep it under the sauce, then bake it in a very slow oven
(225 F) for 2One half hours, or until the meat is tender and the sauce
thickened.

Source: The Food of Greece by Vilma Liacouras Chantiles Avenel Books, New
York ISBN:051727888X

Typed for you by Karen Mintzias

From Gemini's MASSIVE MealMaster collection at www.synapse.com/~gemini