We set the pork and chicken to marinating and learned to debone our rabbit. A very delicate operation, as the backbones of the rabbit are a bit mysterious--rather like a fish at the base, and then knobby and tendon rich higher on the spine. Still, with a sharp knife and a lot of encouragement we did just fine (or non c'e male, as Marcella said). We lined the rabbit with pancetta (yeah!) and then some green apples before tying it and putting it to roast on the stove top in casserole with butter, olive oil and shallots.
Next to more deboning, this time with the quail. Tiny little creatures with remarkably human proportions, but we mercilessly removed the breasts and the legs, wrapped them in more pancetta (ancora, yeah!) and pan-fried them with olive oil, butter and some juniper berries (with gin at the end for a bit of finish). Marvelous little fellows and wonderfully tasty.
The chicken was grilled on Marcella's wonderful stovetop grill, hotter than blazes. We chatted about Americans abroad and perceptions of America, and heard a delightful story about two little Qatari princes learning to cook pizza all while enjoying another great wine (this time red) and sampling our 4 meat dishes.
Afterward we went back to the impressive Duomo, which dominates every aspect of the small city--no matter where you are, you always seem to be able to see a sliver of it. The construction of the Santa Maria dei Fiori, as the Duomo is also known, happened over many years, and it remained domeless for a long time. A note to my architect friends--if you're really good, they might install a carved bust of you in the building (congrats to Brunelleschi for solving the dilemma of the astonishing dome)! The facade of white, green and pink marble was added in the later 1800s, and this makes it unbelievably ornate, although the size is also impressive.
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