Rockin' Good Rabbit

I just saw my neighbor walking into his house joined by his hunting dog and their obvious catch of the day, three rabbits. I guess I am not as squeamish as I use to be as a child, don't get me wrong I did say to myself; awe poor cute little bunnies. I do sometimes feel like such a cold heartless individual when I crave and eat meat but it is an honest natural craving I cannot escape.

I have had rabbit prepared in so many different ways from country fried, braised in wine and I have even had it barbequed which is very good by the way. As good as all those preparations have been this recipe has to be my absolute favorite. There is uniqueness to these flavorings being combined together, it actually seems like it shouldn't work but let me tell you that it does. These flavors work in a big way, you find yourself slowly processing each individual bite with an inquisitive delight.

This recipe is side dish friendly so whether you like potatoes, rice or stuffing, salad, cauliflower, or broccoli. Whatever you choose they will all compliment this rabbit perfectly.

Cinnamon Rabbit

1 rabbit cut into pieces or 3 rabbit loins
4 Strips of bacon cut into bite size pieces

1/4 cup of melted butter

1 tbsp. Cinnamon
1 tsp. Nutmeg
2 tbsp. Horseradish

1/2 cup of water

Salt and Pepper to taste

Sauté the 4 strips of bacon over medium-high heat in butter till some of the bacon grease renders, do not let bacon get crisp, add rabbit and brown in butter and bacon, about 2 or 3 minutes on each side. Place rabbit and drippings along with bacon pieces in baking dish. Stir remaining ingredients into a 1/2 cup of water and pour over rabbit.

Bake in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for 35 minutes or until tender.

FYI- No need to hunt for your rabbit these days, most grocery stores carry most game meats packaged and ready to go for your convenience.

In a pinch this recipe works equally well with any type of poultry.

Julie's Got Game!

My father, grandfather and Uncle all went hunting together when I was growing up so we ate quite a variety of game meats. I was fine with eating the rabbit...that is until I saw the cute little furry thing blood stained being carried in the house by my father. I'd like to say the sight of that rabbit sent me running towards vegetarianism but sadly it did not. It merely kept me from partaking in rabbit for a short time.
I very much enjoyed the pheasant it was very mild in flavor not gamey at all but I do have to say I had a real hard time with the venison. My family loved it but no matter how many different ways that it was prepared I still found it too strong and much too gamey.
Over the years I continued to try venison in various forms but it wasn't until I was in my early thirties that I really developed a love for it. One of my favorite preparations using venison is chili. I actually think chili tastes better with venison than it does with any other type of meat. I am given a great deal of venison meat each year so I am always trying to come up with different ways to make it so we don't get bored eating the same old thing over and over again. I have hit on a couple really great flavor combinations using venison which I will share with all of you in future posts. For now lets start with a truly delicious recipe for venison chili of course if you are unable to get any venison you may substitute any meat of your choosing.

Venison Chili

2 lbs. venison, cubed or ground
4 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
4 lg. tomatoes, coarsely chopped
2 med. onions, coarsely chopped
2 bell peppers, large dice
1 Jalapeno pepper, remove seeds and mince finely
2 cups of water
2 tbsp. chili powder
1/2 tbsp. ground cumin
1/4 cup of molasses
1 cup of red wine
4 tbsp. cooking oil
1 tbsp. sweet basil
1/2 tbsp. black pepper, coarsely ground
1 tsp. salt

In a large pot, sauté venison in hot oil until slightly browned. Add garlic, onion, and bell pepper; continue to sauté until onion is translucent. Add water, tomatoes, jalapeno pepper, chili powder, cumin, molasses, salt, pepper, and basil; simmer for at least 2 hours. 30 minutes before serving, add red wine.