LAPIN CHASSEUR 5 to 7 hours 3 lb. rabbit, cut into 8 pcs. 2 lg. cloves garlic, 1 tsp salt cut up 1/2 tsp. pepper 1 c. dry red wine 4 Tb. olive oil 1/2 tsp. thyme 1 lg. onion, chopped 1/2 lb. mushrooms, 2 lg. green peppers, cut up sliced thin 3 lg. tomatoes, peeled, cut up 1/2 tsp. salt TO COOK: Sprinkle the rabbit with 1 tsp. salt and the pepper. In a large skillet, over medium-high heat, warm the oil and saute the rabbit until well browned on all sides, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the meat to a plate. Saute the onion, peppers, tomatoes and garlic long enough for the onion to wilt and brown the vegetables a little. Scrape into the crockpot. Place the meat on top. Pour the wine into the skillet; scrape up the pan juices and turn into the pot with the thyme. Cover and cook on LOW 5 to 7 hours. BEFORE SERVING: Skim a little fat from the cooking liquid into a large skillet over medium-high heat, saute the mushrooms until tender, 5 to 10 minutes. Add 1/2 tsp. salt and stir mixture into the rabbit sauce. Makes 4 to 6 servings. PILAF Makes about 2 1/2 cups 1/2 c. fine noodles, broken in pieces 2 Tbs. butter or margarine 1 can beef broth 1/3 c. water 1/2 c. raw long grain rice In saucepan, brown noodles in butter; stir often. Add remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Cover and simmer 20 to 25 minutes, or until liquid is absorbed. POLLO ALLA DIAVOLA For 4 persons 1 broiling chicken 3 Tbs. olive oil 1/3 c. lemon juice 2 tsps. salt 1 Tb. crushed peppercorns 1. Lay the chicken on a flat surface with the breast facing down, and split it open along the entire backbone. Crack the breastbone from the inside. Spread the chicken as flat as you can with your hands. Turn it over so the breast faces you. Cut the wings and legs where they join the body, but without detaching them - just enough to spread them flat. Turn the chicken over again, with the inside of the carcass facing you, and pound it as flat as possible, using a cleaver or large meat flattener. It should have something of a butterfly shape. 2. Put the chicken in a deep dish. Pour the lemon juice over the chicken, then add the peppercorns and the olive oil. Cover the dish and let it marinate for at least 2 hours. Uncover and baste from time to time. 3. When the fire is ready, sprinkle the chicken with salt and place on the grill (which should be about 5 inches above the charcoal), skin side toward the fire. Broil until the skin has turned light brown, then turn it over on the other side, basting with marinade liquid from time to time. Turn it over after about 10 minutes and cook briefly once again on each side, until the thigh is tender at the pricking of a fork. (All together it should take about 35 minutes.) If the marinating liquid should run out before the chicken is done, baste with a teaspoon of olive oil from time to time. Season with a pinch of crushed pepper before serving. Although charcoal is the ideal for chicken alla diavola, it is delicious even on an indoor broiler. Preheat the broiler to its maximum setting at least 15 minutes ahead of time. CHARCOAL-BROILED VEGETABLES For 4 persons Cook the vegetables in the first flush of the fire. When they are done, the fire is ready for broiling whatever you are having. With a full load of vegetables, calculate about 25 to 40 percent more charcoal than you would use ordinarily for steaks or hamburgers alone. 1 lg. flat Spanish onion olive oil 2 sweet green or red peppers crushed peppercorns 2 lg. firm, ripe tomatoes 1 tsp. chopped parsley 1 med. eggplant 1/8 tsp. chopped garlic 2 med. young firm zucchini 1/2 tsp. fine dry unflavored 1/4 lb. fresh crisp mushrooms bread crumbs 1. Remove the outer, crackly skin of the onion, but do not cut off the point or the root. Divide it in half horizontally. 2. Wash the peppers in cold water and leave whole. 3. Wash the tomatoes in cold water and divide in two horizontally. 4. Wash the eggplant in cold water, then cut in half lengthwise. Without piercing the skin, make shallow cross-hatched cuts, spaced about 1 inch apart, in the eggplant flesh. Sprinkle liberally with salt and stand the halves on end in a colander for at least 15 minutes to let the bitter juices drain away. 5. Wash the zucchini thoroughly in cold water. Cut off the ends; then cut the zucchini in to lengthwise slices about 3/8 inch thick. 6. Wipe the mushrooms clean with a damp cloth. Unless they are very small, detach the caps from the stems. You are now ready to light the fire. 7. When the highest flames have died down, place the onion on the grill, cut side down. Place the peppers on the grill as well, laying them on one side. After 4 or 5 minutes, check the peppers. The skin toward the fire should be charred. When it is, turn another side of the peppers toward the fire, at the same time drawing them closer together to make room for the tomatoes and eggplant (see Step 10 now). Continue turning the peppers, eventually standing them on end, until all the skin is charred. Remove them from the grill and peel them while they are as hot as you can handle. Cut them into 2 inch strips, discard the seeds, put the cut-up peppers into a bowl, and add at least 3 tablespoons of olive oil plus large pinches of salt and cracked peppercorns. Toss and set aside. 8. While the peppers are still cooking, check the onion. When the side facing the fire is charred, turn it over with a spatula, taking care not to separate the rings. Season each onion half with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Move to the edge of the grill, making sure there is some burning charcoal underneath. 9. When the onion is done, in about 15 to 20 minutes, it should be well charred on both sides. Scrape away part of the blackened surface and cut each half into 4 parts. Add it to the bowl of peppers, tossing it with another pinch of salt and cracked pepper. (The onion will be quite crunchy, which makes a nice contrast with the peppers, but it will also be very sweet, with no trace of sharpness). 10. When you first turn the peppers (see Step 7 above), make room for the tomatoes and eggplant. Place the tomatoes, cut side down, on the grill. Check them after a few minutes, and if the flesh is partly charred, turn them. Season each half with 1/2 teaspoon of olive oil, a small pinch of salt, and the parsley, garlic and bread crumbs and cook until they have shrunk by half and the skin is blackened. 11. Shake off any liquid from the eggplant. Pour 1 tablespoon of olive oil over each half and place it on the grill with the cut side facing the fire. Allow it to reach a deep brown color, but don't let it char, which would make it bitter. Turn the eggplant over and season each half with another tablespoon of olive oil. From time to time as it cooks, pour 1/2 teaspoon of oil in between the cuts. The eggplant is done when it is creamy tender. Do not cook it beyond this point or it will become bitter. 12. When the eggplant is nearly done, put the zucchini slices on the grill. As soon as they have browned on one side turn them over and cook until done, 5 to 8 minutes. Remove to a shallow bowl and season with a large pinch of salt, pepper, and about 1/2 tablespoon of oil. 13. When you turn the zucchini over, put the mushrooms on the grill. These cook very quickly, about 1 minute to a side, including the stems. Add them to the bowl of zucchini and season in the same way. NOTE: It is unfortunate that the length of this recipe makes it appear so forbidding. It is actually about as simple to execute as grilled burgers and hot dogs. The whole secret lies in mastering the sequence in which the vegetables are put on the grill. Aside from that, there is very little to do except watch them. The fire does nearly all the work. The entire process should take about 35 minutes. MOZZARELLA, TOMATO AND BASIL SALAD serves 4 - 6 3 med ripe tomatoes 3/4 lb. fresh mozzarella cheese (not aged) 1 bunch fresh basil 1/2 c. extra virgin olive oil 1 tb. lemon juice salt and pepper to taste Core and slice the tomatoes. Slice the fresh mozzarella. Shingle the slices of tomato and cheese onto a serving platter with fresh basil leaves in between the slices. Mix the olive oil, lemon juice and salt and pepper together and pour over all. Allow to marinate at room temperature for at least 2 hours. BASIL SAUCE Mince or pound in a mortar a generous handful of fresh parsley picked from the stems, together with several leaves of fresh basil and 1 clove garlic, adding olive oil a little at a time until a thick, smooth paste is achieved. Toss the herb paste with 1 pound of any pasta, which has been cooked in salted water, drained thoroughly and kept very hot. Add a little more oil or a little butter, if necessary, and sprinkle liberally with grated Parmesan cheese. Serve hot. MARINARA SAUCE Saute 2 onions, sliced, and 1 clove garlic in 4 tb. olive oil for about 5 minutes. Discard the garlic and stir into the seasoned oil 2 1/2 c. cooked tomatoes flavored with basil. Cook over a brisk flame for 5 minutes, lower the flame and simmer for 1 hour. Add 2 anchovy fillets, cut into small pieces, 1/4 tsp. sugar and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for 10 minutes longer. Add 1/4 tsp. oregano. Pour the sauce over 1 lb. cooked spaghetti and sprinkle with grated Romano cheese. BASIC EGG PASTA This makes enough pasta to serve 4 as an appetizer or 3 as a main course. 1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour 1/2 tsp. salt 2 lg. eggs 1 tb. oil, if using the electric mixer or food processor. Mixing by hand: Put the flour mixed with the salt on a wooden board or a counter top. Make a well in the center of the mound, and break the eggs into the well. Beat the eggs with a fork, slowly incorporating the flour from the sides of the well. As you beat the eggs with one hand, your other hand should be shoring up the sides of the mound. After a while, the paste will begin to clog the tines of the fork. Clean it off and continue to mix the flour into the egg mixture with your fingertips, just as you would in making any paste. When the flour and egg are all mixed, press the dough into a ball. It will seem to be composed of flakes of dough. Set it aside to rest for a minute while you wash your hands, scrape and clean the board, and dust it with flour. If there are dry flakes that obstinately refuse to become part of the mass, get rid of them now. Now begin to knead the dough. Push the heel of your hand down hard, stretching the dough firmly away from you. Fold the flap back toward you and give the lump of dough a quarter turn. Press down on another section of the dough. Hand mixed dough isn’t easy to work with. It is stiff-textured and requires a lot of hand pummeling. At first it may seem that the ball of dough won’t hold together, but the act of kneading will distribute the moisture evenly through it, and after a few minutes, it should begin to form a ball. Knead for a full 10 minutes, pushing, folding, and turning until the dough is smooth. The thing to remember is that this is supposed to be harder than kneading bread, so don’t despair. When you are done, pat the dough into a neat ball and cover it with a dish towel or a sheet of plastic wrap. Let it rest for at least 30 minutes. Two hours rest is even better. MINESTRINA DI CUBETTI - CHICKEN SOUP WITH CHEESE CUBES Put 10 oz. ricotta cheese in a bowl and work it thoroughly with a wooden spatula, beating it until it is quite smooth. Add 1 whole egg and 1 egg yolk, blend thoroughly, then add salt, a good grating of nutmeg, and 2/3 cup grated Parmesan. When the paste is well blended, put it in a buttered earthen or glass baking dish, place the dish in a pan of hot water and cook the paste in a slow oven (300F) until it is firm. Allow the paste to cool. When ready to serve your soup, cut the cheese paste into small cubes, place them in a soup tureen, and pour over them boiling chicken broth. LASAGNE VERDI - GREEN LASAGNE OR GREEN NOODLE PASTA Wash 1/2 pound spinach and cook it with only the water remaining on the leaves until it is just soft. Drain the spinach, press out the water, chop and force it through a sieve. (or blend). Reduce to a smooth puree. Allow it to cool. Sift 4 c. flour and 1 tsp. salt into a wide bowl. Make a well in the center and in it put 2 large beaten eggs and the pureed spinach. Mix gradually with the fingers of one hand, or with a fork, until the paste is well blended. If all the flour is not incorporated, add a few drops of water. If the paste is too soft, add more flour. Knead the paste thoroughly for at least 123 minutes, or until it is elastic and smooth. Divide it into 4 pieces and roll them out 1/16 inch thick with a rolling pin or with a pasta rolling machine. Cut the sheets into rectangles 2 x 4 inches or longer. Sometimes the sheets are cut in 4 inch squares. Let them dry on towels for an hour. Proceed with any recipe for baked lasagne. Also, you may roll the paste very thin, roll up the sheets, and cut the rolls into 1/4 inch strips, to make green noodles. Dry the strips for half an hour, boil them 5 minutes and serve them with butter and grated cheese or with any sauce of your choice. This recipe makes about 1 1/4 pounds of pasta.