Coniglio al Vin Santo (aka Thumper)

The view from my galley this evening:

This recipe for Braised Rabbit with Leeks, Turnips and Vin Santo is from Mario Batali's Molto Italiano. The butcher offered to cut the rabbit for me, but I wanted to practice my butchering skills.

Not too bad for a first try:


First I seasoned the rabbit with salt & pepper, dredged in flour and cooked in olive oil until it was golden brown, about 10 minutes:

I removed the rabbit from the pan and sauteed cubes of turnips and rounds of leeks for about 5 minutes. Next I added dry sherry (I didn't have any Vin Santo), Mario's Basic Tomato Sauce (canned tomatoes cooked in sauteed onions, carrots, garlic and thyme) and chicken stock:

When the mixture came to a boil I added the rabbit back to the pan:

The covered pan went into a 375 degree oven for an hour and 15 minutes:

Except for the Rabbit Tostada I had at Cindy's Back Street Cafe in Napa a couple of years ago, I hadn't eaten rabbit since I was a kid. My grandma used to make fried rabbit for my dad on his birthday and I loved it. John & I were both a little disappointed in this dish. I don't know if it was because of my poor rabbit skills or the quality of the rabbit, but we had both hoped for a juicier bunny. Also the turnips cooked too long and the sherry made the rabbit a little sweet for my taste. Despite these criticisms, we still enjoyed the dish and I'm looking forward to the leftovers (without the overcooked turnips and leeks!) for lunch one day this week.