Rabbit Rillettes with Champagne Gelee

Ease of Preparation: Medium
Time of Preparation: 15-20 minutes,plus 2 hours brining time and 5 hours braising time
Yield: 4-6 servings

Lean, flavorful rabbit meat is given a slow and low cook in rich duck fat until it can practically be spread on toast! Cut that richness with a Champagne gelee (everything else is just sparkling jelly) and fresh berries to impress and dazzle!

Ingredients:

Rillettes:

• 4 rabbit legs and thighs
• 1/3 bottle (~1 ¼ cups/250 ml) Champagne
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) salt
• 1 lemon, peel only, wide strips
• 1 ½ pounds (~600 g) duck fat
• 3 sprigs thyme
• 3 sprigs rosemary
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 ½ teaspoons (7.5 ml) black pepper
• 1 whole nutmeg, cracked + ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) grated
• Salt and pepper
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) butter, room temperature
• 3 tablespoons (45 ml) Dijon mustard
• 1 small orange, zest

Champagne Gelee:

• 2/3 bottle (~2 ¼ cups/500 ml) champagne
• ¼ cup (60 ml) granulated sugar
• 6 sheets (10 g) gelatin

To Serve:

• Edible flowers
• 6 each blackberries and raspberries
• Finely chopped tarragon, parsley, chives
• Crostini

Method:

For the Rillettes:

Brine the rabbit legs in a large zip-top bag with Champagne, salt, and lemon peel.

Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, up to overnight.

Preheat the oven to 275 F (135 C).

Melt the duck fat in a heavy pan over medium heat.

Remove the rabbit legs from the brine, pat dry, and add to the fat.

Add the thyme, rosemary, garlic, bay, pepper, and whole cracked nutmeg and return to a low simmer.

Cover, transfer pot to oven and cook for 3-4 hours, until meat is starting to get tender.

Uncover the pan and cook for a further hour, until any bubbling subsides and the meat is very tender.

Remove from oven and strain through a sieve set over a heat proof bowl.

Spread the solids on a pan to cool, reserve the fat.

When cool enough to handle, debone the meat and shred until it resembles a fine fibrous mass.

Discard the bones, cartilage, garlic, rosemary, bay, nutmeg, and thyme.

Combine the meat with ½ cup (120 ml) reserved fat, grated nutmeg, butter, Dijon, orange zest, season with salt and pepper.

Reserve in the refrigerator.

For the Champagne Gelee:

Bloom the gelatin in cold water for 5-8 minutes, until soft.

In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the champagne with the sugar and bring to a simmer.

Turn off heat and whisk in soft gelatin sheets and stir until dissolved.

Remove from heat and let chill 15 minutes.

Line a glass 5-x 8-inch (12.5 x 20.5 cm) dish with parchment and pour in the gelee.

Carefully place the berries into the liquid in even intervals, bout 1 inch (2.5 cm) apart.

Refrigerate for at least 2 hours until firmly set.

To Serve:

Present the Rillettes using a 2 ½ inch (6.25 cm) ring mold. Garnish with chopped herbs.

Use a 1 to 1 ½ inch (2.5 to 3.75 cm) ring mold/cookie cutter to cut out neat coins of the gelee with berries in the middle.

Garnish with edible flowers, as desired.

Serve cold with crostini on the side.