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Rabbit Braised In Wine With Chocolate
(Conejo A La Ampurdanesa)
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| What You Need: |
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4 tablespoons lard
¼ pound salt pork, finely diced
A 2½-to 3-pound rabbit, thoroughly defrosted if frozen, cut into 8 serving pieces
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
12 whole peeled white onions, each about 1 inch in diameter
1 tablespoon flour
½ cup dry red wine
2 cups water
1 small bay leaf, crumbled
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
¼ teaspoon thyme, crumbled
¼ cup blanched almonds combined with ¼ cup pine nuts (pignoli) and pulverized in a blender or with a nut grinder or mortar and pestle
2 teaspoons finely grated unsweetened baking chocolate
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| How To Cook: |
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1. In a heavy 4- to 5-quart casserole, melt the lard and add the pork dice. Stirring frequently, cook over moderate heat until the pork dice have rendered all their fat and are brown and crisp. With a slotted spoon, transfer the pork to paper towels to drain.
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2. Pat the pieces of rabbit completely dry with paper towels. Season them liberally with salt and a few grindings of pepper. Add the rabbit to the fat remaining in the casserole and brown it well, turning the pieces with tongs and regulating the heat so that they color quickly and evenly without burning. Avoid crowding the pan; if necessary brown the rabbit in two batches. As the pieces brown, transfer them to a plate.
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3. Add the onions to the casserole and brown them, shaking the casserole occasionally to roll them around and color them as evenly as possible. With a slotted spoon, transfer them to the plate with the rabbit.
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4. Pour off all but a thin film of fat from the casserole and stir in the flour. Cook for a minute or so until the flour browns lightly. Then pour in the wine and water and bring to a boil over high heat, meanwhile scraping in any brown particles clinging to the bottom and sides of the casserole.
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5. Add the bay leaf, parsley, thyme, and the reserved pork dice and rabbit, reduce the heat to low and cover tightly. Simmer undisturbed for 30 minutes.
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6. Meanwhile, with a mortar and pestle or with the back of a large spoon, mash the almonds, pine nuts and chocolate together. Add them to the casserole with the reserved onions, stir thoroughly, and cover again.
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7. Simmer for 30 minutes longer, or until the rabbit is tender and the meat shows no resistance when pierced with the point of a small, sharp knife. Taste for seasoning. Serve at once, directly from the casserole.
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