RABBIT HABITS
Diversify your protein with Emeril’s take on fricassee
For years I had thought about cooking a rabbit. I searched through my cookbook collection and found this recipe from Emeril Lagasse for Rabbit Fricassee. h If you've never cooked a rabbit, give this recipe a try. Check the freezer section of your grocery store for dressed rabbits.
Laura Tolbert, also known as Fleur de Lolly, has been sharing recipes, table decor ideas and advice for fellow foodies and novices on her blog, fleurdelolly.blogspot.com for more than eight years. You can contact her at facebook.com/fleurde.lolly.5, on Instagram and fleurdelolly@yahoo.com.
Rabbit Fricassee
1⁄2 cup vegetable oil
2 rabbits, rinsed and cut into 8 pieces each
1⁄2 cup all-purpose flour 2 cups chopped yellow onions 1 cup chopped celery 1⁄2 cup chopped green bell peppers
1 bunch green onions, chopped (green and white parts separated)
2 garlic cloves 1 teaspoon Emeril’s Essence Seasoning
4 cups chicken broth, plus more if necessary
Cooked white rice
Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large, heavy pot or Dutch oven. Add the rabbit and cook until lightly browned, about 5 minutes on each side. Transfer the rabbit to a plate lined with paper towels.
Reduce the heat to medium, add the flour and continuously stir to make a golden-brown roux, about 10 minutes. Add the onions, celery, bell peppers, white parts of the green onions, garlic and Emeril’s Essence Seasoning. Cook, stirring, until the vegetables are very soft, about 10 minutes.
Stir in the broth and bring to a boil. Lower the heat. Return the rabbit to the pot and simmer, covered, until the rabbit is very tender, about 3 hours, adding more broth as necessary if the mixture becomes too dry.
Add green parts of the green onions to the rabbit and cook for 15 minutes. Serve the rabbit and gravy over rice.
Shrimp and Crab Stuffed Mirlitons
This is another Emeril Lagasse recipe. If you’re unfamiliar with mirlitons, they’re also known as pear squash, vegetable pear or chayote. They are a member of the gourd family, along with melons, cucumbers and squash. They have a mild taste and are an excellent vessel for filling with your favorite stuffing mixture.
I chose shrimp and crab. For six people as a main dish, allow at least one whole mirliton per person, or half a mirliton if serving as a side dish.
6 mirlitons
Mild olive oil 1 cup finely chopped onion 1⁄4 cup finely chopped celery 1⁄4 cup chopped green bell pepper 2 tablespoons chopped green onions 1⁄2 teaspoon minced garlic 1 bay leaf 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme 1 teaspoon Emeril’s Seasoning Blend 1 cup shrimp stock 1 pound medium-size shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 pound lump crabmeat, picked over for shells and cartilage
Fine dried breadcrumbs 1⁄4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Preheat the oven to 350o F.
Choose plump, firm mirliton. In a heavy pot, bring about 2 inches of salted water to a boil. Add the mirliton, cover and reduce heat and simmer until they are tender, about 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from pot and allow to cool.
Cut the mirliton in half lengthwise and remove the seeds. Scoop out the softened mirliton, keeping the shell intact. Chop mirliton and set aside.
Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped vegetables, garlic, chopped mirliton, bay leaf, thyme, seasoning blend and shrimp stock. Cook, occasionally stirring, until the liquid in the skillet evaporates, 15 to 20 minutes. Taste and season with salt and pepper, if needed.
When the vegetables are very tender, increase the heat to medium high, add the shrimp and cook until the shrimp are pink and firm.
Remove from the heat and discard bay leaf. Add the crabmeat and stir gently to mix.
Mirliton has a delicate flavor that’s greatly enhanced by shrimp. This is not meant to be a fiery hot dish; don’t over season.
Spoon the mixture into the mirliton shells, dust the top with the breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese, and bake for about 30 minutes, or until the breadcrumbs are lightly browned.