Tuesday 31 May 2011

Not Even Hare Today , Never Mind About Tomorrow

Sonata:

For anyone who remembers my planned hare hunt and had hoped for a photo or two , I have disappointing news .

This is as near as I got




hares proving as elusive as leprechauns this year . Even the rabbits , usually hip-hoppitying about in the industrial park at the east of town every evening , proved to be camera-shy .


But , in Groningen on Friday , I caught sight of a postcard announcing an exhibition of bronzes of hares in the Hazenkabinett in Weener in Germany ( on till 18th September if you're near ) . I love his hat .

Never mind . There's always next Spring .


Meanwhile , I've been re-reading Honey From A Weed by Patience Gray . With all the delicious recipes and its sheer enjoyment of good food and delight in the sharing of treasured local dishes , it's a fabulous read .

Her recipe for Rabbit with Garlic Sauce is simplicity itself , the rabbit being marinaded in olive oil with thyme and rosemary , then grilled and served with allioli . But , as she says , "You will not be disappointed ".

If you don't eat meat , of course , you might prefer my recent 50 cent find in a secondhand book shop . Gail Duff's Vegetarian Cookbook is "very of its time" so has the occasional interesting surprise among the vegetable moussakas and mushroom kebabs . If you want to give a meat-free 70's Theme Night , you couldn't do better than to include Carrot , Grapefuit and Yoghurt salad . But it would be a good idea to have plenty of her Mushroom and Ale soup for the chaps and her Brown Bean Chasseur should appeal to all .


With any luck I won't be cooking much this weekend , anyway . I'm going to eat tapas and Turkish food and paper thin pizzas in Amsterdam , instead .

11 comments:

Suse said...

Are those bells on the ear tips of his hat? That's rather special.

I used to make Rabbit in Red Wine Sauce all the time. But then I read the children Watership Down and that put an end to that.

love those cupcakes said...

Blimey, Gail Duff's book. That's a blast from the past. Looking at something like Ottolenghi's Plenty, veggie cuisine has come a long way. Hope you got to munch your way through tapas and pizza.

Rattling On said...

I saw a hare the other week, first time ever! Maybe it was the one meant for you...
I love rabbit stew. My cousins had ferrets and we took stuff home for my Aunty to cook. Ahh, counrty life...

rachel said...

Turkish food AND Amsterdam?? How lucky are you!!

Give us more warning next time and I'll book a flight.....

Deborah said...

Just like point out that the bronze is a rendering of a Canadian Winter Hare. The bells serve as advance warning to dog-walkers, so as to get a good grip on sled dogs lunging at the sight of small furry animals to chase.

SmitoniusAndSonata said...

Surely the red hood can't the best camouflage in the snow ?
And Suse is obviously much more honest than me ... youngest child's constant companion was a small stuffed rabbit . So we ate "chicken" in Red Wine Sauce quite a lot instead .

Marcheline said...

Wait, were you hunting for statues and paintings of hares, or actual bunnies? I don't recall that particular mention.

Have fun with the tapas and pizzas!

Liz Hinds said...

I shall wait to see your hare photos next year then.

Tapas and Turkish? Oh yum.

Friko said...

Hasenkabinett? Only in Germany.

Would they sell you the rabbit for the stew too, or are theirs just exhibits?

Hope you got all the tapas Amsterdam has to offer.
It's time I visited.

Tania said...

Is it evil to read this post and inadvertently think of the bunny in his hutch in the back garden?

Jocelyn said...

I want to be someone whose palate (and brain) are mature enough to eat hare, but I just can't. My husband shall do it for the both of us, if you ever cook a rabbit and invite us over. Perhaps we should meet first.