Rabbit pate

Ingredients for 8 servings:

• 500 g flour
• 250 g butter, cold, diced
• 15 g salt
• 80 ml water, very cold
• 1 egg(s)
• 1 egg yolk, for brushing
• 600 g rabbit meat, leg, boneless
• 1 liver(s) (rabbit), cut into small pieces
• 1 lemon(s), zest and juice
• 1 tbsp rosemary, chopped into as small a powder as possible
• 1 garlic clove(s), finely chopped
• 2 tbsp port wine
• 100 ml cream
• 100 g crème fraîche
• 2 tbsp pistachios
• 2 tbsp black olives, pitted, cut into small cubes
• 2 fillets of rabbit loin, skinless and boneless
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp cognac
• 4 leaves of chard, without stems, briefly blanched
• salt and pepper
• Bones of the legs and back
• ½ bunch soup vegetables
• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 shot of port wine
• 150 ml water
• 5 sheets of gelatin
• 1 sprig(s) rosemary
• 1 tbsp white wine vinegar

Instructions

Working time approx. 4 hours; Rest time approx. 12 hours; Cooking/baking time approx. 40 minutes; Total time approx. 16 hours 40 minutes

Rabbit pâté

It’s best to knead the dough ingredients with a food processor. This also works by hand, but is a bit laborious due to the cold butter. Then chill the dough. For the stuffing, remove the meat from the legs, removing all tendons, skin, and cartilage, and dice the meat. Chill thoroughly, but do not freeze. Next, mix in the lemon zest, liver, rosemary, garlic, and cream and puree in batches in a cold food processor. Then press the mixture through a sieve into a very chilled aluminum dish. Season generously with port wine, salt, and pepper, stir in the crème fraîche until smooth, and evenly distribute the pistachios and diced olives. If you want to be extra sure, scoop out a small piece of meat with a small spoon and cook it in boiling salted water for 2 minutes to test the flavor. Adjust seasoning if necessary. For the filling, sear the loin fillets very briefly (just 1 minute) all over in very hot olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and deglaze with the cognac. Allow to cool. Lay out two chard leaves on each side, slightly overlapping, and roll up a loin fillet in each so that the two parcels, placed one behind the other, are approximately the length of the terrine dish. If necessary, trim some of the filling and use it for another purpose. The dish should not be longer than the two loins. Now roll out the dough into a rectangle about 4 mm thick. Use the terrine dish to mark the measurements on the dough. For the base, also calculate the height of the narrower, wide sides. First place this base dough sheet in and then pull up on both wide sides, then insert the two equally long long sides and press everything down firmly to ensure there is no hollow space. Now fill in almost half of the stuffing, pressing it down firmly with the back of a spoon. You can tap the dish several times on a wet cloth in short, firm bursts to help close any air pockets. Place the wrapped fillets in the middle and pour the rest of the stuffing over them. Tap the dish a few more times on the wet cloth and cover with another sheet of pastry. You can decorate this as desired. Use a small round cutter to cut two holes in the lid, the chimneys. Insert aluminum foil chimneys into these holes. Brush the rest of the lid with egg yolk. Bake the pie for 15 minutes at 220 degrees Celsius, then brush with egg yolk and finish cooking for another 25 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius. Make a stock for the aspic. Brown the bones and vegetables in oil, deglaze with port wine, add water, add rosemary and simmer for 2 hours, strain through a sieve and skim off any fat. Soak the gelatin in water for 10 minutes and dissolve it in the stock with the vinegar. Add a little salt and let cool. Remove the pâté from the oven. If necessary, use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature through one of the holes; it should be about 68 degrees Celsius. Let the pâté cool, then remove it from the tin with a knife and pour the cold, but still liquid, aspic into the holes, sealing it. Chill thoroughly overnight. To serve, cut into 1-2 cm thick slices and serve with lamb’s lettuce or chutney.