LIèVRE à LA ROYALE

Steps:

• FIRST DAY
• Preheat the oven to 275°F (135°C). In a big, enameled cast-iron pot, combine the rabbit, hare, bacon, veal trotter, carrots, celery, bouquet garni, wine, and brandy. Season with salt and pepper and add water to reach 1 inch (2.5 cm) below the top of the meats.
• Cover the pot, place in the oven, and bake for 9 hours, or until the meats begin to fall apart. Check the water level every now and again and add more water if it begins to drop.
• Remove the pot from the oven and carefully transfer the meats and the trotter to a rimmed baking sheet and let cool. Strain the liquid into a clean bowl and discard the solids. Cover the bowl and refrigerate.
• Shred the meat away from the hare and rabbit bones, keeping it in big chunks. Be careful as you work, as both meats are notorious for their tiny bones, which can pose a choking risk. Remove the meat from the trotter; discard the gelatin, skin, and bones; and chop the meat finely. Shred the bacon. Cover and refrigerate all of the meats.
• SECOND DAY
• To make the sauce, in a 2-quart (2-liter) saucepan, sweat the shallots in the butter over low heat for 4 or 5 minutes, or until fragrant and translucent. Add the thyme, bay leaf, juniper berries, and garlic, and sweat for 2 minutes more. Add the brandy to deglaze the pan.
• Turn the heat to medium. Add the wine and cocoa powder, stir, and then cook for 15 to 20 minutes, until the sauce turns syrupy.
• Add 3 cups of the reserved cooking jus and cook for 20 to 25 minutes, until the sauce is reduced by half. Remove the pan from the heat and strain the sauce through a fine sieve, pressing on the shallots to extract the pulp.
• To make the matignon, in a sauté pan, sweat together the shallots and garlic in the butter over medium heat for 4 to 6 minutes, or until fragrant and translucent. Stir in the parsley and season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• To build the dish, season the foie gras slices on both sides with salt and pepper. Place a large frying pan or sauté pan over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, add the foie gras and sear for 1 minute on each side. Transfer to a plate and let rest. Reserve the fat that collected in the pan for adding to the meat mix or the sauce.
• In a bowl, combine the meat mixture, the matignon, and enough of the sauce to moisten the dish. Season with salt and generously with pepper, then give the mixture a once-over again for bones.
• Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Cut 6 to 8 pieces of caul fat each the size of a legal letter, and fold each piece in half. Shape the meat mixture into 12 to 16 patties each the size of a pack of American cigarettes. Place 1 slice of foie gras between 2 patties, then arrange a line of truffle slices on the top. Wrap the stack in a folded sheet of caul fat, cutting away the excess and tucking the ends under. The truffle slices will be visible through the caul fat layer.
• Butter a baking dish just large enough to hold the wrapped stacks side by side, and arrange the stacks in it. Place in the oven and bake for 35 minutes, or until slightly golden.
• Just before the stacks are ready to come out of the oven, make the finishing sauce. In a saucepan, reduce the wine to half over medium heat. Add the remaining reserved cooking jus and cook until reduced to 2 cups (500 ml). Add the cream, vinegar, and brandy; mix well and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, whisk in the butter, a piece at a time, and remove from the heat. In a bowl, whisk together the yolks and the blood, add to the sauce, and buzz the sauce with a hand blender until smooth. (At this point, you cannot reheat the sauce above about 180°F/84°C or it will separate.)
• For each serving, place a spoonful of the potatoes on a warmed plate, and put a portion of lièvre on each mound of potatoes Break an opening in the top of each portion, and spoon some sauce inside. Keep the rest of the sauce handy. Serve at once. You will find it is necessary to drink un grand Bourgogne with this dish.