Rabbit Stew

Last week at the farmer's market, I happened upon a vendor selling wild rabbit.

Why not?

I'd quite enjoyed the coniglio brasato at a cozy local Italian Restaurant, so I decided to give this Paleo Protein a go!

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Pat the rabbit dry with paper towel; then season with freshly ground black pepper.

Sear in olive oil until nicely browned in a dutch oven on both sides. 

Remove from oven and sent on a plate, tented with foil.

Add mirepoix (diced onion, celery and carrot)  to the dutch oven and saute until browned.

Place rabbit back into dutch oven and cover with homemade broth (great change to use up the stock you may have made from the leftover turkey!), throw in some fresh tomatoes (depending on where you live, and whether they're available!), a bouquet garnis made of fresh thyme, a bay leaf and some fresh oregano tied with kitchen twine and a few cloves of crushed garlic.

Bring to a simmer over medium heat, then cover, remove from burner, place in oven and cook 1 1/2 – 2 hours, checking occasionally.  

When done, the meat should be falling off the bones and internal temp should exceed 160F.

Serve as a soup, adding in some baby spinach right before serving or atop a bed of lovely sauteed kale or chard.