Rabbit Stifado (Κουνέλι Στιφάδο)

Lamb and sheep are cute animals, chickens are cute when they are born, calves are cute, turkeys are majestic with their plumage, deer are a adorable.

All the above animals do not posess the "Fugly" gene yet we eat them.

Rabbits are cute and sadly delicious!

I just wanted to draw the parallel before any hypocrites write or opine saying...oh but rabbits are so cute and cuddly. Creampuff the the white-tailed bunny is cute, adorable and untouchable.

Sammy the the fornicating bunny at the ranch has been bred to be eaten and in my opinion, is totally fair game in this cut-throat food chain that is Earth.

If you're a vegetarian...this post is not for you. I am cutting up a rabbit here into pieces, browning it off in a pot and braising it until the meat forks off the bone.

Rabbit is good eats.

Stifado is a Greek stew of lots & lots of onions, some tomato product and a protein being the usual ingredients. The most popular Stifados are made with rabbit or hare but I've also enjoyed beef or veal, octopus and rooster stifado.

One of my earliest (and fondest) memories of Stifado goes back to my visit to Greece in 1988. I was in my father's town (Amynteon, Florinis), staying with relatives and my Uncle Pavlo (bless his soul) had shot a huge wild hare on his farmland.

Like with any wild game, the meat is wilder tasting and tougher as the animal has developed more muscle mass and it's diet is more complex that the farm fare of it's rabbit cousins.

Hare demands that it be marinated overnight in red wine, herbs, spices and then cooked in a slow braise that ultimately becomes an aromatic stew that will perfume your home.

Exit wild hare and enter rabbit. Rabbit is far milder in flavour and one would be hard pressed to taste-test if they were eating chicken or rabbit.

So, many ask why eat rabbit when one can have chicken? Easy...at least you know you're eating rabbit - not some Franken-chicken that you bought cut up into pieces, wrapped in plastic by Dexter and removed of any evidence of having two heads!

I apologize to no one for my food choices, especially when it comes to my delight in eating rabbit. Oh sure, the pet store gang of rabbits are the elite, untouchable ones but my farm-raised rabbit has probably had more action than any of us have seen in our lifetime.

The sacrifical rabbit is justified and I'm going to share this Stifado dish which celebrates Greek cooking at it's best: taking less popular ingredients (rabbit), cooking it simply and cooking it well.

Few ingredients are used here but the quality is high. Take the time to make a Stifado...you'll be rewarded with a delicious meal that will awaken the olfactory and transport you my aunt's Greek kitchen, complete with loud Greeks, hungry children and thankful guests.

Rabbit Stifado (Κουνέλι Στιφάδο)
(for 4)

1 whole rabbit, cut into pieces
1/2 cup olive oil
15-16 whole small onions
6 whole cloves of garlic
salt and pepper
flour for dredging
2 heaping Tbsp. of tomato paste
+ 1 cup of water to dillute it in
1 cup dry red wine
3 bay leaves
1 cinnamon stick
lots of cracked black pepper

Pre-heated 350F oven

1. After cutting up your rabbit into pieces, rinse and pat dry and lightly dredge in seasoned flour. In a large, oven safe Dutch oven, add a few turns of olive oil over medium-high heat and brown-off the pieces of rabbit in batches and reserve in a plate.
   
2. Turn down the heat and add your wine and deglaze and scrape up the brown bits at the bottom of the pot. Add your rabbit back in the pot, followed by the onions, garlic, dilluted tomato paste, bay leaves, cinnamon stick and cracked black pepper.
3. Bring to a boil and cover and season with salt and pepper. Place in your pre-heated oven (middle rack) and braise for about 90 minutes. Carefully take the stew out of the oven and taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
4. Remove the lid and place back in the oven for another 30 minutes. This step will cook-off the remaining liquid, thicken and brighten your sauce to a warm, red colour.
5. Serve each plate with a heap of onions, couple of pieces of rabbit and a spoonful of sauce. Grind some fresh black pepper over top and serve with some good, homemade bread and a dry, Greek red wine.

Note on cutting up rabbit:
The rabbit usually comes headless and the body is in tact with organ meat inside. What I did was dissect it in half (lengthwise, then I lopped off the hind and front legs. What you're left with is the middle part of the rabbit - the saddle.

You can cut the 2 saddle halves into two, leaving you with four pieces plus the four legs.

Drunken Veal (Μεθυσμένο μοσχάρι)

Today's June 1st and when a new month begins, it's customary for Greeks to salute one & other with a "Kalo Mina" or a wish for a "good month".

With the onset of a new month also comes the notion of new ideas. I thought it would be neat to "try out" a new dish and use my parents as the "guinea pigs".

I couldn't decide what to eat today...no....we (the family) couldn't decide on what to eat today. Negotiations for dinner ideas went all morning and then finally it was decided...we were going to have Μεθυσμένο μοσχάρι or Drunken Veal. For those that can read Greek, my approach to this dish took a little detour from the original linked recipe but I think I've done the recipe justice.

My mother has never cooked a Greek traditional dish in this way using beer but I have seen some Greek recipes floating around with the use of beer and this dish sold me.

For those more familiar with Greek cuisine, this dish was reminiscent of a Kokkinisto but here beer is used as the braising liquid rather than wine.

For those not familiar with Kokkinisto, the closest dish I can think of is the French Beef Carbonnade.

I know we're almost into summer but you can count on "iffy" Canadian weather to through a wrench into grilling plans. If you hankering for a comfort dish, perhaps it's a cool, rainy day outside or you one of those folks living in the souther hemisphere...come into my kitchen, have a seat and let's try some Drunken Veal.

Veal (Μεθυσμένο μοσχάρι)
(for 6)

1 kg. stewing veal, cut into large cubes
1/2 cup olive oil
flour for dredging
2 large onions, roughly chopped
4 carrots, peeled and cut into thin, round slices
1 cup of good canned plum tomatoes, hand crushed
1 can of lager or pilsener
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup of water
3 bay leaves
6-7 whole allspice
1/2 cups of cremini or button mushrooms, quartered
salt and pepper to taste

Pre-heated 350F oven

1. Cut your veal into cubes and pat-dry. Season some all purpose flour with salt and get an oven-safe pot or Dutch oven warmed over medium-high heat. Add your olive oil and just when it gets hot, brown your veal in batches and reserve.
2. In the same pot, add your onions, carrots and saute for 5-7 minutes to soften. You may add some water to help deglaze the brown bits.
3. Add your bottle of beer, bay leaves, allspice berries, crushed plum tomatoes, mushrooms and water and bring to a boil. Season with some salt and pepper, place the lid on and throw into your oven.
4. Allow your Drunken Veal to braise for 90-120 minutes or until the meat is tender and separates with a fork. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper and serve hot over a bed of egg noodles or rice pilaf (as I've done here).
   

Corned Beef and Cabbage

Emiline the Sugar Plum is throwing a party. It's just a couple of days before St. Patrick's Day and the Irish all over the world are celebrating the day St. Patrick chased all the snakes out of Ireland.

Emiline has asked anyone wanting to participate to post an Irish food or beverage for the event. I was going to make a Guinness and beef stew but that's been done alot. I opted for the other Irish classic, corned Beef & cabbage.

Before any of my Greek readers go off the rail thinking I'm serving up rare meat again, corned beef gets it's pink colour from being marinated in pickling spices, salt peter and lots of peppercorns (hence the name).

I used my trusty slow cooker for this dish which was really easy to make: clean, chop, stir, dump and wait.

The aroma that wafted through the house was to die for! If you want to serve up a healthy, delicious meal, consider corned beef & cabbage. You get tender corned beef, braised cabbage, boiled potatoes and sweet onions and carrots.

I even was able to hide some corned beef for a leftover Reuben sandwich...but as Hammy Hamster says...that's another story!

Corned Beef & Cabbage in Ale

3-4 lb. corned beef brisket
1 head cabbage, quartered
1 bottle of ale (Alexander Keith's)
4 carrots, halved then cut into long pieces
12 small red potatoes
4 onions, peeled and quartered
1 teaspoon dry mustard (Colman's)
3 bay leaves
handful of peppercorns
1 Tbsp. of pickling spices or Montreal steak seasoning
1 large sprig thyme

1. Empty the corned beef (plus any liquid) into your slow cooker or dutch oven. Add all the ingredients except for the cabbage and carrots.
2. Cover with a lid and braise for 90 minutes.
3. Add the cabbage quarters and carrots and cover again and braise for another hour or until the cabbage and carrots are fork tender.
4. Slice the corned beef and arrange on a plate with the cabbage, potatoes, onions and carrots. Serve with some zesty mustard.
   

Awesome Osso Bucco

Osso Bucco is a northern Italian dish, from the Lombardy region (near Milano). The old school Osso Bucco did not include tomatoes (as they appeared in Italy after the dishes creation).

This dish is made with veal shanks and icing on the cake for this dish has to be the marrow inside each bone.

I made the familiar Osso Bucco with a tomato base and I haven't deviated too much from what I've researched on the 'net.

I've used aspects of Tyler Florence's and Mario Batali's Osso Bucco and I created what I think will be a delicious meal for Italian guests.

I'm a big fan of braised meats and the I knew the Osso Bucco would taste great - just from the aroma coming from the kitchen. But I knew I also forgot something (first time making it).

I forgot to tie the shanks with butcher's twine. Oh well, next time!

Today I've invited Maryann of Finding La Dolce Vita and Maria of Proud Italian Cook. The "donas" are hosting a food event called, Festa Italiana and you're all invited.

Simply create a dish or drink of Italian panache and the gals will let you in the door.

Make yourselves at home, this Greek dude is cooking up some Osso Bucco for "da ladies" and before we get on to the dish..."Tutti a tavola a mangiare!"

Veal Osso Bucco
(serves 4)

1 cup all purpose flour
salt and ground pepper
4 veal shanks, tied into taute rounds
olive oil
3 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1 medium onion, diced
1 stalk of celery, diced
2 carrots, diced
1 lemon, zest peeled off into strips
3 bay leaves
4 cloves of garlic, smashed
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
1/2 bottle Italian red wine
3 cups of chicken stock
2 cups of good tomato sauce
1 Tbsp. fresh thyme

Gremolata

1/2 cup of chopped fresh parsley
2 Tbsp. lemon zest
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. of fresh thyme

1. Mix your salt and pepper in a bowl with the flour and taste to be sure the seasoning is correct. Dredge your shanks in the flour and shake off any excess.
2. Heat a large pot or dutch oven over medium heat and add your olive oil (3 count) and the butter. Brown your shanks in batches (do not overcrowd or they will boil). Reserve the shanks on a plate.
3. Preheat your oven to 375F.
4. Using the same pot, saute the onions, celery, carrots, lemon peels, garlic, parsley and bay leaves over medium heat (for about 7-10 minutes).
5. Add your shanks (and any juices) back into the pot and add your red wine, thyme and simmer until the wine has reduced by half.
6. Add the chicken stock and tomato sauce, bring to a boil and cover with the lid.
7. Braise your Osso Bucco in the oven for 90 minutes. Remove the cover and continue to cook for another 20-30 minutes (enough for the sauce to become thick).
8. Serve on a bed of garlic mashed potatoes or risotto Milanese and top with the Gremolata.

Braised Pork Shanks With a Pink Peppercorn Avgolemeno

This title is a mouthful, it fills the eye, satiates the belly. Some thought went into this dish as it's my first foray into the Royal Foodie Joust, hosted monthly by Jenn, The Leftover Queen.

Each month a winner is chosen and the victor gets to choose the three key ingredients that must be used for the ensuing challenge.

Gild, The Voodoolily won in February and she chose pork, citrus and pink peppercorns as this month's ingredients for the challenge.

I had no actual dish in my roster of dishes that would fit the bill so a little contemplating and experimentation was going to be way to go.

Call it cooking without a net, crap-shoot cuisine, blind-faith braising.

I chose to use a pork shank for this dish and although it looks like it's huge for a single serving, relax...there's a lot of bone there.

Marinading, searing and braising put this pork shank through a good workout and the final touch is added with a Greek flair, by adding a Avgolemeno Sauce to round out this dish.

I was very pleased with the look, aroma and taste of the dish. Look at the colour of the meat, the sauce coloured by pink peppercorns and sweet paprika.

The pork was rendered to a "fall off the bone" state, laid upon a body of tender chunks of celery root and braised leeks.

Braised Pork Shanks With a Pink Peppercorn Avgolemeno
(for 2)

2 pork shanks
2 sprigs of rosemary, bruised
1 tsp. chopped fresh sage
6 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 cup olive oil
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup white wine + 1/4 cup for deglazing
1 tsp. salt
5 whole allspice
10 pink peppercorns, cracked
1 Tbsp. sweet paprika
2 bay leaves
1 cup of chicken stock
1/2 cup tomato passata
1/2 cup water
salt and pepper to taste
3 leeks, greens removed and white parts slit partway sidesways (to remove sand & grit)
1 celery root, peeled and cut into chunks

Avgolemeno Sauce

2 eggs
juice of 1/2 lemon
2 Tbsp. flour
1/8 tsp. of cold water

Preheated 400F oven

1. In a bowl, add your rosemary, sage, garlic, wine, pink peppercorns, allspice, lemon, oil, salt and pepper and mix well.
2. Score your pork shanks in a criss-cross manner so the fat renders during cooking.
3. Rub the marinade all over the pork shanks and place in a bag and marinade for 2 hours in the fridge. Return to room temperature before cooking.
4. Place a large skillet over medium high-heat and add some vegetable oil tosear the skin sides of your pork shanks and place in a roasting pan (with a cover). Discard the oil.
   
5. Add your leftover marinade, celery root chunks and leeks to the roasting pan (around the pork shanks).
6. Deglaze your skillet with the remaining white wine, tomato passata and stock, scraping up all the brown bits. Pour over the contents of the roasting pan.
7. Season your vegetables with some salt and pepper and the sweet paprika.
8. Cover the vessel with a lid and place in oven for 30 minutes at 400F and reduce to 350F for the remaining 90 minutes.
9. Remove from the oven and keep the lid on to keep warm.
10. Meanwhile in a bowl, prepare your Avgolemeno Sauce by beating your eggs and flour and while still beating, add your lemon juice plus 1/8 cup of cold water.
11. Take a ladle of braising liquid and whisk into the Avgolemeno mixture.
    
12. Add your Avgolemno Sauce to the braised pork and veggies and gently shake the pot back and forth for the sauce to penetrate the meal. Check and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
    

Pastitsada (Παστιτσαδα)

Yesterday, I volunteered to clean & organize our freezer as it's been getting difficult to find things...it was a mess.

I literally took every thing out, cleaned the inside of the freezer and separated then organized each category of food.

I found a good piece of stewing veal that was getting to the "6 months" stage and it was
crying , "cook me, cook me"!

I have a good backlog of "to try" recipes and this veal would be perfect for trying a Pastitsada. This is a slow-braised dish that originates from the Greek island of Corfu. Corfu (Kerkyra) is on the Adriatic coast, faces Italy and Pastitsada's origins are Venetian.

If you have a less expensive beef, veal or even some chicken pieces, try this slow-braised dish. It was the perfect, Greek comfort food for a cool, overcast Sunday in TO (Toronto).

Also, you may use any pasta you like as the bed for this spicy (not hot but flavourful spicy). The traditional dish calls for the use of Perciatelli. It's the pasta that looks like thick spaghetti but it's also hollow. I used Tortiglioni because this pasta is new to me, it's ridged like penne and hollow.

This is not a 30 minutes dish but it's easy and if you around the house on a Sunday doing your New York Times crossword...start a pot of Pastitada!

Pastitsada (Παστιτσάδα)

3 lbs. stewing veal or beef
4-6 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
1/4 cup olive oil
2 large onions, finely chopped
1/3 carrot, grated
1 cinnamon stick
5 allspice berries
3 whole cloves
3 bay leaves
1 cup of dry white wine
3 Tbsp. of balsamic vinegar
1 can of good plum tomatoes, pureed
pinch of smoked paprika
1 lb of Tortiglioni (penne, ziti or rigatoni is fine)
1/2 cup butter
2 oz. of grated parmesan cheese
2 oz. of grated Kefalotyri (or romano) cheese

1. Set the oven to heat to 350F. Rub the veal with coarse salt and fresh black pepper. Make shallow cuts all over the meat and insert the think slices of garlic (use about half).
2. Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a oven-safe pot or casserole; then add the meat and sear on all sides. Reserve the meat.
3. Into the same pot, add some more olive oil and saute your onions, grated carrot, the remaining garlic, bay leves, cloves, allspice and cinnamon stick under medium heat for 10 minutes (enough to soften the onions).
4. Deglaze your pot with the balsamic vinegar and white wine and scrape up to loosen all the brown bits. Add your tomato sauce and bring to a boil. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper and once everything has come to a boil, add your meat into the pot and place the lid on and throw it into the oven for 3 hours. (Part of the meat will be exposed, turn the meat each hour to keep all of it moist. The meat should be tender and flake off using tongs and a fork).
5. Remove the bay leaves and set the sauce aside while you boil your pasta.
6. When the pasta is almost al dente, strain the pasta and reserve for a few minutes. Using the same pot that you boiled the pasta in, put the butter in and melt over medium-low heat and let the butter brown. Once it's turned "nut-brown", add your pasta and half of your grated cheese and and some of the sauce and toss to coat well.
7. Lay your pasta out on a platter and lay the pieces of juicy, flaky meat on top and pour more sauce over top. Finish the dish with more grated cheese and the bay leaves for garnish.