I love rabbit, but I've mainly eaten it during trips to France and Italy. Lapin au Moutard at a bistro in Paris; Rabbit Loin stuffed with Fennel in Le Marche; a Rabbit Ragu on Papparadelle in Tuscany. I've always been able to compartmentalize the deliciousness on my plate from the cute, silky Alpaca bunnies I've cuddled at fiber shows. With their long soft ears, trusting eyes....

No, not going there.

OK, first step was finding a bunny, er, rabbit. Struck out at Whole Foods and my fancypants local butcher. I called around, and my new best friend Tony at Tony's Italian Market in Roslindale assured me "sure dear, I have two in the freezer. I'm going on a cruise next week and closing Sunday, otherwise I'd order you a nice fresh one and cut it up for you." I told Tony I'd order fresh some other time, and reserved the frozen rabbit. I picked it up Saturday morning, and since Larry was along for the ride, homemade sausages, prosciutto, and pancetta somehow went home with us as well.

Rabbit defrosted in the fridge for a day, and then I unwrapped it--and panicked, because while the structure was similar to a chicken, the long loin and strangely jointed legs gave me pause. Thank God for Google and Youtube Videos. I think there's a video for everything. Here's the one I used, stopping and starting the laptop several times, knife in the other hand.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3koU93-2e4

Cue my husband and offspring singing "Kill the Wabbit, Kill the Wabbit..."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGhQ2BDt4VE&feature=related

I looked at many recipes for rabbit in mustard. Most called for the rabbit to be baked, some for it to be braised. Since I wanted to add smothered fennel and onions to the sauce, I decided to go with a braise. I also hoped that long slow cooking would avoid any of the dryness that some recipes warned about. From the Flavor Bible I used mustard, fennel, onions, thyme, white wine, and stock.

Braised Rabbit in Mustard with Fennel
4 servings

1 rabbit, cut into 8 pieces
1/2 cup Dijon grainy mustard
1/2 tsp. thyme
Spray oil or Pam
1 fennel bulb, cored and sliced
1 onion, sliced
2 tsp. butter
1 1/2 cups dry white wine
1/2 cup chicken stock or broth
2 tsp. butter
2 tsp. flour
2 Tbs. creme fraiche (or sour cream)

1. Mix mustard with thyme, add salt and pepper. Rub all over the rabbit pieces, lay in a bowl, cover and refrigerate 10-24 hours.

2. In a large deep-sided skillet, spray with oil, then heat 2 tsp. butter. Add the sliced onion and fennel and saute. Add a few spoonfuls of the chicken stock and slowly cook 20 minutes or so, until almost soft. Let the broth evaporate so the vegetables can caramelize a bit. Add salt and pepper to taste and remove from pan.

3. Spray pan again generously with oil, then add as many rabbit pieces as will fit comfortably in the pan without crowding. Turn heat to medium high, and quickly sear the rabbit. Turn and repeat; then remove to a dish and finish the remaining rabbit. (spray pan again before second batch of rabbit)

4. Add the last of the butter to the pan and melt, then flour to the drippings in the pan, (if you're not watching your calories feel free to add more butter) and saute for a few minutes. Add the wine and broth, bring to the boil for 2-3 minutes while whisking.

Lower heat, and add the rabbit and vegetables, mixing well. Turn heat to low, cover, (turn the pieces once or twice during cooking) and very gently simmer for 40-50 minutes, or until rabbit is tender.

5. Stir in 2 Tbs. creme fraiche, stir to coat rabbit with the sauce. Add chopped parsley, and serve with potatoes, noodles or rice.

We all loved it, even my picky teen. And since rabbit is so low in fat, and I severely cut back on the butter and creme fraiche in traditional recipes, this can actually be a healthy and very tasty dinner!