the ultimate Easter supper

For the second year now, Banana and I have been drawn into an Easter dinner party tradition started eight years ago. The originators are my old friend Philip and an old neighbor of his from Atlanta who now lives in Queens with her husband and two and a half year old daughter. The genesis was the decision to cook chicks and bunnies for Easter. Brilliant!

This year's rabbit preparations included braising with juniper berries and leeks and roasting with local organic bacon. There was also homemade sauerkraut, fingerling potatoes, crab and conch ceviche, arugula salad. The wines ranged from a delicious pinot noir to an interesting Croatian red. I had picked up bread and three cheeses at the Prospect Park greenmarket. (On a side note, the trip to the greenmarket was a reminder of how much easier it is to eat locally and well in New York than many, many other cities, including Richmond.) For dessert, there were dessert liqueurs, a chocolate terrine with creme fraiche and raspberry sauce, and manchego and cabrales.

Through the course of the evening, Banana acted as the perfect oldest kid of the four kids we had running around.