Roasted Rabbit with Spinach and Potato Dumplings

Rabbit preparation

• 1
  Peel and press the garlic. Finely chop the onion. Cut the bacon into 1×3 cm strips and place in the freezer for 20 minutes.
• 2
  Preheat the oven to 140 °C. Cut the rabbit into portions, separating the front and hind legs, the head, and finally halving the saddle. Cut holes the size of bacon strips into the individual meat portions with a thin knife. Fill the holes with the prepared bacon strips. Dice the remaining bacon.
• 3
  Season the meat thoroughly with salt on all sides and rub with pressed garlic. Place the chopped onion in a casserole dish and lay the prepared meat on top. Add whole peppercorns, allspice, bay leaf, the remaining diced bacon, and pour in the broth.
• 4
  Cut a circle from baking paper with a diameter slightly larger than the casserole dish with the rabbit. Crumple the paper, then unfold and crumple it again a few times under running water. Then spread it over the rabbit, cover the casserole dish with a lid, and bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour or until the meat is tender.
• 5
  Then remove the lid and paper, increase the oven temperature to 200 °C, return the casserole dish to the oven, and let the meat brown.
• 6
  Serve with spinach puree, potato dumplings, pan juices, and fried onions.

Onion preparation

• 1
  Peel and finely chop the onion. In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the lard, add the onion, and sauté until golden brown, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and let it finish cooking.

Spinach puree preparation

• 1
  Remove roots and stems from spinach leaves, wash thoroughly several times in cold water, and drain. Finely chop the onion. Peel and finely chop the garlic as well.
• 2
  In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the lard and sauté the chopped onion until translucent. Reduce heat to one-third, add garlic, and stir for 1 minute.
• 3
  Add spinach, mix thoroughly, and cover with a lid for 1 minute. Uncover, stir, and let cook for another 1 minute. Then roughly blend the spinach. Add eggs and breadcrumbs, mix, and let warm through for 1 minute.
• 4
  Season with salt and freshly ground pepper and mix.

Potato dumplings preparation

• 1
  Bring well-salted water to a boil in a large pot for the dumplings.
• 2
  In a second pot, boil potatoes in their skins until semi-soft. Once cooled, peel them and finely grate them onto a pastry board or into a large bowl. Add starch, flour, eggs, 1 teaspoon of salt, and quickly mix with a wooden spoon or by hand to form a soft but compact dough.
• 3
  On a floured table or pastry board, shape the dough into longer rolls (so they fit into the pot with water) with a diameter of 5 cm. Immediately place them into the salted boiling water. After a while, check that they are floating; otherwise, detach them from the bottom. Cook over low heat for 20–25 minutes.
• 4
  Melt the lard. Remove the cooked dumplings with a slotted spoon and place them in a bowl with the melted lard, coating them. This way, they won't dry out, harden, and will remain moist.
• 5
  Cut the roll into 1.5 cm wide dumplings.