Recipe: Oven-Roasted Rabbit with Lemons and Olives

the appetizer:

The Oldways Table by K. Dun Gifford and Sara Baer-Sinnott celebrates traditional foods from around the world, including recipes like Paximadia (Greece), Dukkah (Egypt), and Oven-Roasted Rabbit with Lemons and Olives (Crete).

Oven-Roasted Rabbit
with Lemons and Olives

by Victor Broceaux

Serves 8

Victor Broceaux is a long-time chef and an experienced restaurateur with Restaurant Associates, the New York City-based restaurant management company. His experience has taken him from the elegant Four Seasons restaurant in New York to corporate dining rooms and trendy restaurants across the United States. Our image of Victor, though, is of a hands-on chef, cooking up splendid Mediterranean meals in small restaurant or hotel kitchens, from Crete to Chios to Lecce. This dish from Crete is just as delicious stateside as it was in Greece.

1 whole rabbit (about 1-1/2 pounds total), cleaned
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 lemons, julienne the zest of 2, and juice from all
8 cloves garlic, lightly crushed
1/2 cup white wine
3 sprigs rosemary
1 medium Spanish onion,cut to a medium-sized julienne
25 (about l cup) Kalamata olives, pitted

After unwrapping the rabbit, keep only the meat. Wash the meat in plenty of water. Dry with paper towels. Cut into eight portions. Dust the rabbit with salt and pepper and place in a large nonreactive pan or bowl.

In a medium-sized bowl, combine the olive oil, lemon, garlic, wine, rosemary, and onions. Pour over the rabbit and let marinate for at least 1 hour, up to 12 hours, in the refrigerator.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Place the rabbit in a roasting pan and cover with the marinade. Roast for 15 minutes, basting often. Add the olives and reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees F. Continue to baste and turn the pieces as they begin to brown. Cover with aluminum foil if they are browning too much. Continue roasting until cooked through, about 90 minutes total. Discard the rosemary sprigs and serve.