Roasting the Easter bunny

I could never get away with this in the States. Who among us would actually eat rabbit for Easter?? It almost seems like a sacrilege, but yet here I am in Tuscany about to butcher the Easter bunny for dinner.

They all come complete with a head--eyeballs and holes where the ears used to be. They come with tiny kidneys, a heart and a liver too. I got out my trusty, sharp kitchen shears and turned him (her?) into something that looks more like chicken and less like a tragic figure. This is when I feel my most Italian, when chopping up small, helpless animals and turning them into a feast for the eyes and senses.

Even though it's still windy and raining, I put on some shoes and took a walk around the yard to get some herbs. We have great quantities of sage (salvia), rosemary (rosmarino), and bay leaves (lauro) here, so I never need to buy seasonings--only salt and olive oil. To the rabbit pieces I added quartered onions, chunks of fennel, a whole head of garlic and several carrots. Handfuls of herbs, salt an oil, plus a healthy dose of white wine go in next, then it will spend about 2.5 hours in the oven at 325' and the house will fill with heavenly aromas.

Here, it's ready to go in the oven.

For a first course I will make fettuccini topped with a sauce of sautéed exotic mushrooms. At the market yesterday I found a package of beautiful mixed mushrooms for €1.44! The price of food is so much cheaper here.

Ale, Flora and baby Claudio are due here about 7:30 tonight. As they are always late, it means dinner will be closer to 9. Oh well, it's the Italian way!