Make 2011 the year you spice things up in the kitchen--why not start with this easy and delicious grilled rabbit recipe. We whipped this one up for our Christmas Day dinner. The secret is in the marinade. Tuck the rabbit meat into a ziploc or resealable container and set it aside for a several hours to let all the goodness soak in.

We've adapted a recipe that we found inAdam Perry Lang's book BBQ 25. He called for chicken, but we substituted rabbit to great success. Rabbit is a great source or protein and is naturally low in sodium. While it has a reputation of tasting "gamey" we found that with a nice marinade the meat was interesting in flavor (much more lively than chicken) while not tasting too exotic that it might not be suitable for guests.

This meal involves some planning. It's great for entertaining since most of the messy work takes place hours before your guests would arrive.

Ingredients:
Whole rabbit, cleaned and cut into leg, thigh, and breast (3 lbs).
4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons minced rosemary
1 tablespoon salt

1 tsp. pepper
1/2 cup olive oil

Basting Liquid
1/2 cup olive oil
Juice of 1 large lemon
1 tsp salt
2 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons honey

In the morning toss rabbit and marinade in a ziploc. Mix around until all rabbit is nicely coated. Place in fridge for at least 3 hours.


When you are ready to cook. Heat grill or oven to 350. Roast until rabbit reaches 170 or cooked to your taste. Estimated time about 60 minutes. Baste repeatedly with basting mixture by brushing rabbit. Enjoy! A 3 lb rabbit will serve about 4 people. We served with wild rice, lentils will also work nicely.

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