Recipes from professional Chef Tallyrand:

• Rabbit Pie with Pine Nuts •

With New Zealand cuisine being heavily influenced by the European immigrants, this dish has always been a popular one. Rabbits were introduced into New Zealand as a food source from Europe by the settlers and like in many countries they took over and are now considered a pest, but they make a great pie!

I have not specified the type of pastry as this is most often a personal thing, with some people preferring puff, some short pastry and others filo - the dish works great with all of them. You could forget the pastry all together and just serve it as a rabbit stew.

Ingredients

rabbit (cut into portions)	1	pc
whole peeled tomatoes(tinned)	500	gm
garlic cloves	4	pc
sage leaves	3	pc
bay leaf	2	pc
rosemary sprig	1	pc
olive oil		sq
dry white wine	300	ml
pine nuts	2	tbs
pastry		sq

Method

1. In a frying pan, heat some oil over medium heat; add whole bay leaves, rosemary, sage and sliced garlic cloves and stir until the garlic is golden
2. Remove the herbs and garlic to a small dish and set aside
3. Increase the heat to high and add rabbit (dusted in flour); sauté until golden
4. Add the wine and season with pepper, nutmeg and salt; let simmer for 1 minute, (scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon)
5. Stir in the chopped tomatoes, herbs and garlic, and pine nuts
6. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pan and gently simmer the stew for 20 to 30 minutes, or until the rabbit pieces are no longer pink in the centre and tender
7. If the sauce is thin, transfer the meat to a serving dish and cover to keep warm
8. Simmer the remaining sauce over high heat until it is slightly thickened; remove and discard the bay leaves and replace the rabbit

To make the pies

1. Spoon the mixture into either a large pie dish or smaller dishes
2. Cut the pastry into required size(s)
3. Brush the edges of the dishes with beaten egg (this will adhere the pastry to the container
4. Carefully place the pastry on top
5. Cut a small hole in the pastry to allow steam to escape and prevent soggy pastry and bake at 180°C until the pastry is cooked

Enjoy and bon appetit . . . . .

Published 01 March 2004