March 20, 2012

Back in the kitchen after Spring break! Wow it feels like I have been away for ever.
Today we spent time learning about a new protein we have not worked with before - rabbit - and 2 new vegetables artichokes and shelled peas.

Both are somewhat difficult to work with. Rabbit has a small yield of meat and it is hard to break down into pieces.  We braised the whole rabbit/cut in pieces until tender. Chef deep fried his with panko bread crumbs and served it with an Asian sauce. You can also braise the rabbit and then shred it into a sauce to increase portions per whole rabbit.

Tips:
-my new favorite Asian sauce = honey, lime, sriracha
-artichokes - to clean, remove all the fibrous parts of the stem, and pull back on the bottom leaves, leaving behind the edible portion - VERY time consuming
-you should either steam or boil/shock, the artichoke - make sure to cook all the way through even if you are going to do further cooking.  a weird thing happens when you don't cook all the way through.
-do not throw out the pea shells - you can boil them, shock them and grind them up, strain them and make a yummy puree
-don't waste artichokes either - take the scraps and simmer in heavy cream with salt and pepper - sift/grind through mill

peas, leeks, butter and mint

pea shell puree with cream and lemon zest

my stuffed artichoke - bread crumbs, olive oil, leeks, onions, garlic

grilled artichoke salad with lemon and olive vinegrette

brasied rabbit

fried rabbit with sweet and sour sauce

rabbit kidneys

artichokes in white wine and olive oil

Chef Douglas