Rabbit Soup

Ingredients

• 2 large or 3 small rabbits
• 1 faggot savoury herbs
• 0.5 head celery
• 2 carrots
• 1 onion
• 1 mace blade
• to taste salt
• to taste white pepper
• a little mace, pounded
• 300 ml cream
• 2 yolks eggs, boiled hard
• 1 French roll crumb
• 1.4 litres water
• 240 ml veal stock or water

Method

Rabbit soup is built on a two-stage stock extraction: first a quick cook of the meat to yield a light broth, then a deeper extraction from the bones with aromatics. This approach—common in nineteenth-century cookery—produces a delicate, pale broth that won't overpower the rabbit's subtle flavour.

Start by soaking the rabbit pieces in warm water for 15 minutes to draw out blood and impurities. Rinse thoroughly under cold water until the water runs clear. Place the cleaned pieces in a heavy-bottomed pot with the herbs, veal stock (or water), and 1.4 litres of water. Bring to a bare simmer—the surface should barely tremble, not roll—and cook for 45 minutes to an hour, until the meat yields easily to a fork. Skim any grey scum that rises in the first 10 minutes; this is denatured protein and will cloud your final soup if left. Remove the rabbit pieces and let them cool slightly, then pick the meat from the bones, setting it aside on a plate covered with a cloth—keeping it out of air prevents oxidation and discolouration.

Return the carcass and all bones to the pot and add the carrots, celery, onion halved, and mace blade. Simmer for 2 hours over a low heat, then strain through muslin or a fine sieve into a clean pot. Allow the broth to cool completely; you can chill it overnight to solidify and lift any fat from the surface.

Pound the reserved rabbit meat in a mortar with the hard-boiled egg yolks and the French roll crumb (soaked in a little cold water first until it's soft) until you have a smooth paste. Push this emulsification|forcemeat through a fine tammy or sieve directly into the cold broth. Whisk constantly as you do this—the meat acts as a binder and will thicken the soup slightly. Reheat gently and simmer for 10 minutes. Mix the arrowroot or rice flour with the cream until there are no lumps, then stir this into the simmering soup. Bring to a full boil for 2 minutes—the starch will set and give you a silken, velvety texture—then season with salt and white pepper. Serve hot in warm bowls.