Spicy Greek Meatballs Recipe

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 jalapeño, seeded and minced
1 large shallot, minced
1 pound ground lamb
4 ounces salt pork, ground or finely minced
Zest of 1 orange
2 tablespoons chopped mint
Freshly ground black pepper
Greek yogurt for dipping – add more mint and pepper to the yogurt for extra zip

Heat a small pan over medium heat and add oil, garlic, jalapeño and shallot, and cook for 1 minute, then let cool.  Meanwhile, crumble lamb into a large bowl. Evenly scatter salt pork, orange zest and mint over lamb, and season with pepper. Sprinkle the cooled garlic mixture over lamb. Gently mix until just combined, then form into 1¼-inch balls and transfer to a sheet pan.

Bake in 350 oven for 20 minutes or until meatballs are lightly browned.

Makes about 20 meatballs.

Elizbar Bisbee

She is a chocolate chinchilla Satin Angora doe, about 6.5 months
old in this photo.  Between coats, but she has nice density and
good ring definition, which is desireable in the chinchilla color.  

Rosemary-Brined, Buttermilk Fried Rabbit

Brine

1 small onion, thinly sliced

4 garlic cloves, smashed with the flat side of a knife

1 teaspoon vegetable oil

Kosher salt

5 or 6 branches rosemary, each 4 to 5 inches long

4 ½ cups

1 lemon, quartered

 

2 rabbits, cut into pieces

3 cups all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons paprika

2 tablespoons fine sea salt

2 teaspoons cayenne pepper

2 tablespoons baking powder

2 cups buttermilk

Oil for deep-frying

 

Make the brine: In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, sauté the onion and garlic in the oil until translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Add 3 tablespoons salt after the onion and garlic have cooked for 30 seconds or so. Add the rosemary and cook to heat it, 30 seconds or so. Add the water and lemon, squeezing the juice from the wedges into the water and removing any seeds. Bring the water to a simmer, stirring to dissolve the salt. Remove from the heat and allow the brine to cool. Refrigerate until chilled.

 

Place all the rabbit pieces in a large, sturdy plastic bag. Set the bag in a large bowl for support. Pour the cooled brine and aromatics into the bag. Seal the bag so that you remove as much air as possible and the rabbit is submerged in the brine. Refrigerate for 8 to 24 hours, agitating the bag occasionally to redistribute the brine and the rabbit.

 

Remove the rabbit from the brine, rinse under cold water, pat dry, and set on a rack or on paper towels. The rabbit can be refrigerated for up to 3 days before you cook it, or it can be cooked immediately. Ideally, it should be refrigerated, uncovered, for a day to dry out the skin.

 

Combine the flour, black pepper, paprika, sea salt, cayenne, and baking powder in a bowl. Whisk to distribute the ingredients. Divide this mixture between two bowls. Pour the buttermilk into a third bowl. Set a rack on a baking sheet/tray. Dredge the rabbit in the flour, shake off the excess, and set the dusted pieces on the rack. Dip the pieces in the buttermilk, then dredge them aggressively in the second bowl of flour and return them to the rack.

 

Heat oil in a pan for deep-frying to 350°F. Add as many rabbit pieces as you can without crowding the pan. Cook the meat, turning the pieces occasionally, until they are cooked through. Remove to a clean rack and allow them to rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

Rosemary-Rubbed Lamb Chops

6 lamb rib chops, cut 1 inch thick
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon snipped fresh rosemary or 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
1/4 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup apricot preserves or peach preserves
2 tablespoons water
2 teaspoons Dijon-style mustard
1/2 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules
1/4 teaspoon snipped fresh rosemary or dash of dried rosemary, crushed
1/8 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
  Fresh rosemary sprigs (optional)

In a small bowl combine the tablespoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon rosemary, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and the garlic. Use your fingers or a pastry brush to rub or brush oil mixture onto all sides of the chops.
For glaze, in a small saucepan combine preserves, water, mustard, bouillon granules, 1/4 teaspoon rosemary, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper; heat and stir until bubbly. Remove from heat; set aside.
In a large skillet heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat. Add chops; cook for 9 to 11 minutes or until medium doneness (160 degrees F), turning once. Serve chops with glaze. If desired, garnish with rosemary sprigs.

Texel Ram #513

Somehow I missed posting photos of our new Texel ram.  We got him this fall to use on some of the BFL ewes for butcher's lambs.  Texels have excellent meat carcass traits, and I wanted to see if I could use hybrid vigor to get faster growing lambs on less grain and more grass.  I'm anxious to see how these lambs perform, and likely will end up keeping some of the ewe lambs for breeding.  They'd be backward mules; normally a BFL ram is put to another breed ewe to produce the classic mule.

The wool on a Texel is similar to a cheviot - very white, low grease, medium grade, and fairly harsh to the touch.  Lots of spring and loft, so does not felt well, but makes great padding since it resists matting.  Also long wearing for rugs and such.

Avocado Rabbit Salad

2# rabbit
1 avocado, peeled & cubed
1/4 chopped onion
 juice of 1/2 a lime
2 Tbsp cilantro
salt and pepper, to taste
2 T plain greek yogurt, optional


Cook rabbit, let cool, and then remove from bone and shred. Mix 2 cups of shredded rabbit with all other ingredients