Weekend Cooking Project: Le Pigeon’s Smoked Rabbit Pie with Cheddar Crust and Mustard Ice Cream

Smoked Rabbit Pie, Cheddar, Mustard Ice Cream

*Chef’s Note: The smoked rabbit can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days, we suggest preparing this dish the day before you want to serve it; that will allow you to freeze the ice cream and brine the rabbit hearts overnight, too.

{Serves 4}

Neutral oil for searing

1 whole rabbit, quartered

1 yellow onion, peeled

5 or 6 dried apricots, diced

4 cloves garlic, sliced

1 (12-ounce/375ml) bottle Miller High Life or other mildly flavored beer

1⁄4 cup (60 ml) Moscatel vinegar

2 cups (500 ml) chicken stock

1⁄2 cup (125 g) plus 2 tablespoons Beaver Brand Sweet Hot Mustard or other hot mustard

1⁄2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 cup (250 ml) crème fraîche

1⁄4 cup (50 g) minced bacon

4 (3-inch/7.5cm diameter) prebaked individual piecrusts, purchased or homemade (recipe follows)

1 cup (125 g) grated aged cheddar cheese, preferably Beecher’s

2 tablespoons Herb Pistou (recipe follows)

Rabbit Hearts Chutney (recipe follows)

Mustard Ice Cream (recipe follows)

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). In a large Dutch oven over high heat, heat a thin film of oil. Add the rabbit quarters and sear until browned all over. Remove from the pan and set aside. Add the onion, apricots, and garlic to the Dutch oven and sauté until the onion is slightly translucent, about 4 minutes. Return the rabbit to the Dutch oven. Add the beer and vinegar and deglaze the pan, scraping the bottom of the pan to release any browned bits. Stir in the chicken stock, 2 tablespoons of the mustard, and the pepper.

2. Place the Dutch oven in the oven to braise the rabbit. At around the 2-hour mark, start to check the rabbit every 15 minutes. It is ready to be pulled when the meat begins falling from the bone, which could take up to 3 hours but may happen sooner, so be on your toes.

3. Remove the rabbit mixture from the oven and let cool for 5 to 10 minutes. Taking care not to burn yourself, remove the rabbit pieces from the liquid. Set the rabbit on a plate and gently wipe the pieces dry to prepare them for the smoker. Reserve the braising liquid.

4. If you’re using a smoker, prepare it according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Place the rabbit pieces in the smoker and smoke until the rabbit has a nice smoky aroma, 30 to 35 minutes. It should be pungent and sweet, with a little sour note to it. If you’re using a charcoal grill, light a small fire in the corner of the grill and toss a handful of wood chips on the fire. Place the rabbit on the grill as far away from the fire as possible and close the lid. Smoke, checking every 10 minutes or so to make sure that there is plenty of smoke and to add more wood chips as needed, until the rabbit has a smoky aroma, about 30 minutes. (We cold smoke with alder wood using a Little Chief Smoker, which you can find at almost any camping or sporting goods store, or, of course, online. If buying one is not in the cards for you, you can use a grill plus wood chips.)

5. Remove the rabbit from the smoker and carefully pick all the meat off the bones. Rabbits have many sharp little bones, so we suggest that you sit down, have a beer, and go through the meat two or three times. Return the meat to the Dutch oven and stir in the reserved braising liquid, ¾ cup (180 ml) of the crème fraîche, and the bacon. Cook the mixture over medium heat until almost all of the liquid has reduced (when you tilt the pan there should be about 2 tablespoons of juice visible). The meat should look like pulled pork. Check the seasoning and then let cool to room temperature. At this point, the braised rabbit can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

6. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Fill each piecrust with about 
4 ounces (125 g) of the rabbit braise, so that the filling just hits the lip. Bake for 12 minutes. Remove the pies and increase the heat to 450°F (230°C). Top the pies with the cheddar and bake until the pies are warmed through and the cheese is melted, 4 to 5 minutes.

7. While the pies are in the oven, make your mustard crème fraîche by mixing the remaining ¼ cup (60 g) of crème fraîche with the remaining 
½ cup (125 g) of hot mustard.

8. Gingerly remove the pies from the oven and place one on each plate. Spoon the mustard crème fraîche around the plate. Do the same with the pistou. If you’ve made the rabbit hearts chutney (good for you), add a nice spoonful beside the pie. Top with a small spoonful of mustard ice cream and serve.

Rabbit Hearts Chutney

{Serves 4}

Rabbit Hearts

2 cups (500 ml) water

10 whole coriander seeds

6 white peppercorns

5 cloves garlic, crushed

1 bay leaf

1 tablespoon sugar

2 tablespoons kosher salt

1⁄4 teaspoon pink curing salt

1⁄4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

8 ounces (250 g) rabbit or chicken hearts

Apricot Chutney

1⁄2 cup (125 ml) Moscatel vinegar

1⁄2 cup (60 g) diced dried apricots

1⁄2 cup (75 g) finely diced red onions

1 tablespoon yellow mustard seeds

1 tablespoon poppy seeds

A dash of paprika

A dash of kosher salt

1 tablespoon good-quality olive oil (see sidebar, opposite)

1. Let’s brine the hearts first: In a medium saucepan over high heat, combine the water, coriander seeds, peppercorns, garlic, bay leaf, sugar, kosher and curing salts, and red pepper flakes and bring to a boil. Once the mixture boils, give it a good stir to make sure all of the salt and sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat and add the hearts. Set aside and let cool to room temperature. Place the hearts with their brining liquid in a covered container and refrigerate for 24 hours.

2. The next day, transfer the hearts and their brining liquid to a small saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 50 to 60 minutes, until the hearts have the texture of a steak cooked medium—not too soft, but not chewy either. They will have that meaty “iron” taste. Let the hearts cool in the liquid for about 20 minutes. Then, using a slotted spoon, remove the hearts from the pan and discard the brine. On the bottom of each heart will be a small ring of white fat (you can’t miss it). Hold the heart in your hand and use a paring knife to trim the fat. Think about peeling an apple. Discard the fat and quarter the hearts lengthwise.

3. Now for the chutney: In a heavy saucepan over medium heat, combine the vinegar, apricots, red onions, mustard seeds, poppy seeds, paprika, and salt and cook until there is no liquid left and the apricots are plump, about 
5 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature.

4. In a bowl, toss together the chutney, olive oil, and hearts and serve.

Mustard Ice Cream

{Makes 1 quart (1 L)}

1 cup (250 ml) whole milk

1⁄2 cup (125 ml) crème fraîche

1⁄2 cup (125 ml) heavy cream

1⁄4 cup (60 ml) glucose syrup

11⁄2 cups (375 ml) hot mustard

2 tablespoon Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons sugar

1⁄2 teaspoon kosher salt

5 egg yolks

In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the milk, crème fraîche, cream, glucose syrup, ¾ cup (185 ml) of the hot mustard, the Dijon mustard, 1 tablespoon of the sugar, and the salt and heat until it registers 150°F (65°C) on a thermometer. Meanwhile, in a small bowl whisk together the remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar and the egg yolks. When the cream mixture reaches the proper heat, pour a small amount into the yolk mixture and whisk together. Whisking constantly, pour the yolk mixture back into the saucepan and continue to whisk until smooth. Heat the mixture to 180°F (80°C), constantly scraping the bottom of the pan with a rubber spatula. Using a fine-mesh sieve, strain the custard into a bowl and place over an ice water bath to chill. Freeze according to the instructions for your ice cream maker until it reaches the consistency of soft-serve ice cream. Swirl in the remaining ¾ cup (185 ml) of hot mustard for just a few seconds to leave a nice ribbon. Freeze overnight before serving.

Herb Pistou

{Makes 1 cup}

Leaves from 1 bunch tarragon

15 chives, coarsely chopped

1 cup loosely packed flat leaf parsley

3/4 cup neutral oil

1/4 tsp kosher salt

Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Le Pigeon’s Quiche Crust (for cheddar pie dough)

1⁄2 cup (60 g) plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1⁄4 teaspoon kosher salt

1⁄4 cup (60 g) cold unsalted butter, cubed

2 tablespoons (35 g) cream cheese

11⁄2 tablespoons ice water

2 tablespoons grated cheddar cheese

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).

To make the crust, in a food processor combine the flour, salt, butter, and cream cheese. Pulse until the mixture starts to resemble coarse pebbles. Add the ice water and pulse until the dough just begins to come together. Turn the dough out onto your work surface and knead the grated cheese into it. Divide the dough into four equal pieces. Roll each portion of dough into a ball. Place each ball between two pieces of waxed paper or parchment paper and, using a rolling pin, roll each into a 4-inch (10cm) diameter circle. (Wrap the dough rounds tightly in plastic wrap and place them in the refrigerator to rest if you aren’t going to make the tart shells immediately.)

On a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, place four tart rings, each 3¼ inches (8 cm) across by 1 inch (2.5 cm) high. Peel the parchment paper away from the dough and lightly flour both sides of each dough round. Use your fingers to push the dough into the bottom of the rings and also against the sides. Smooth out any creases. There will be excess dough at the top of the ring. That’s okay. Once all the rings have tart dough in them, place them in the freezer for 5 minutes. Pull them out and trim the excess dough with a paring knife until the dough is flush with the top of the rings. Prick the bottom of each tart shell several times with the tip of a paring knife. Place the dough back in the freezer for a minimum of 10 minutes.

Remove the dough from the freezer and bake in the oven for 10 minutes. Rotate the baking sheet and bake until the crust is golden brown, another 10 to 15 minutes. Let the tart shells cool to room temperature and remove the rings before adding the filling.