pappardelle with wild rabbit, olives and marjoram

Yes! I had been away for a few days. Last Monday, I attended my friends' graduation ceremonies which was fun. I had my graduation a couple of years ago and it's just nice to have that eight seconds moment when your name is called and you walk across the stage and people are cheering for you for the work you've done.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, I went to the annual international student advisor's conference as part of my job in York and spent two days talking about immigration stuffs. OK, you are allowed to yawn...

I went to London on Thursday to celebrate my friend's birthday and I stayed there until yesterday. And if you're like me, when I travel, I don't go to museums or galleries, but I look for food places. Unless, it's food museum, like the chocolate museum when I was in Barcelona. Anyway, back to London, I went to Borough Market for the first time and it was wonderful. I was there around lunchtime and the options for a meal were unlimited. There were stalls that sell seafood, pies, curries, sandwiches, sweets, beverages, etc. I wanted something that I can eat on the go, like a burger, and so I had chicken burger. The thick chicken patty was grilled and then served with garlic mayo, wholegrain mustard, tomato salsa and rocket salad in a lightly toasted sesame bun. Yum! And then I had caramel pudding for something sweet.



What I also like about going to open market is there are many free samples. People offer you food everywhere you go and of course I couldn't say no, because that's just rude.

For souvenir I bought a rabbit which then transformed into today's lunch and also to continue with the cooking project. And yes, I bought a rabbit from London and took it back in a three hours train journey back to Sunderland. The meat was tightly wrapped with a bag of ice, and the butcher ensured me that it'll be fine.

When I got home last night, I marinated the rabbit with olive oil, lemon zest, thyme leaves and garlic, then leave in the fridge overnight. Jamie says you can even leave the meat to marinade for up to a couple of days if you want a stronger flavour.

This morning, I browned the meat in a heavy casserole pot, before adding more thyme, a sprig of rosemary, garlic and white wine. Cover the pot and put it in the pre-heated oven for a couple of hours until the meat pulls away easily from the bone. Just enough time to make the fresh pappardelle pasta or of course you can always buy good quality dried/fresh pappardelle from the store.

Once the meat has cooked and cooled to handle, shred all the meat away from the bones. I removed the rosemary sprig and garlic cloves and put the pot on the heat to reduce the cooking juices until slightly thickened. Stir the shredded meat, olives and marjoram into the sauce and season to taste.

To serve, simply add the cooked pappardelle to the sauce and stir, making sure every strand of pasta is covered by the sauce. Add a little knob of butter, parmesan cheese and lemon zest and sprinkle with more fresh thyme leaves. delicious...


I have plenty of leftover meat and I think this will good for risotto. Anyway, I need to unpack and do some house chores. I have friends coming over later....

And how was your weekend?