Roast Rabbit with Buttered Vegetables and Spaetzle
·Season the rabbit
Wash the rabbit well and pat it thoroughly dry. Season it with salt and pepper all over, including the inside, then rub with crushed garlic. Adjust the amount to taste and to how strong your garlic is.
Roast it in a roasting dish
Place the rabbit in a roasting dish and add a splash of water. Dot a few pieces of butter over the top. Cover with a lid – ideally use an earthenware or cast-iron roasting dish.
Roast until the meat is tender
Put it into an oven preheated to 200°C. How long it takes depends on the size of your rabbit. Ten minutes after putting the dish in the oven, lower the temperature to 150°C. Roast slowly until tender, checking the meat after an hour and a half.
Roasting temperature
Turn the rabbit over onto the other side, adding a little more water if needed. Roast for another one to two hours, depending on the size of the rabbit. If you're short on time, you can roast at 180°C instead of 150°C, which will shorten the cooking time. Once the meat is tender, remove the lid and increase the heat.
Take out the frozen vegetables
Take the frozen vegetables out of the freezer and let them thaw. In a large pan or pot, melt a knob of butter and sauté a finely chopped onion in it.
Add herbs and butter
Add all the frozen vegetables and cook for about ten minutes over medium heat. Season with salt and pepper, adding fresh herbs if you like. Finally, stir in the fresh spinach and heat through for another five minutes. Stir butter into the hot vegetables.
Warm through the spaetzle
Warm the spaetzle through in a dry pan, or fry them lightly until crisp if you prefer. Serve with the rabbit and vegetables, drizzled with the meat's roasting juices.
