The photo to the left is the completed, and braised, Lapin à la Crème de Moutarde. Please understand that there are as as many variations to this classic dish as there are people who make it. Therefore, if you come up with something different or you want to add something else, do so. This recipe is not “set in stone”. That’s what makes it so interesting. If you braise the dish, think white wine. Just some ideas.

Ingredients:
3 lb Rabbit, cut into serving pieces
1/4 c Butter
3 T Plochman’s Stone Ground Mustard
1 c Cream
7 sm Red Potatoes, quartered
1 med White Onion, sliced
6 sm Shallots, sliced
2 lg Carrots, cut to bite size
4 slices Fennel, fresh and thin sliced

Preparation Time: 10 mins Cooking Time: 1 hour 30 mins Oven Temp: 350°F

Directions:
Combine the mustard and the cream. Set aside.

Butter an oven proof casserole dish. Add the vegetables. Place the rabbit in pan. Roast until vegetables are tender and rabbit is browned – not pink or bleeding. Coat the rabbit with the mustard/cream sauce. Serve with the roasted vegetables and any extra mustard/cream sauce that may be left. The photo to the right is an oven roasted version.

Discussion:
This is a French country classic, and there are endless variations. All are good. Some recipes bake the rabbit, others braise it. We like it either way. The keys are mustard—good grainy mustard, not the bright yellow stuff you get at the ballpark—shallots, and something creamy. We use heavy cream, but some people use Crème Fraîche, others sour cream.

Rabbit has a mild flavor that is all its own. Think chicken breast, but with a slightly different flavor. Rabbits usually come whole, and if you don’t know how to break them down yourself, ask the supermarket butcher to do it for you. The photo to the left is the plated oven roasted version. Serve with a Greek wine, Apelia Dry Red Wine. Cheers!