here's a nice rabbit recipe for ya .you need to work fast to get the last of the growing tips on the nettles .substitute beet spinach if you need to
Rabbit with nettles
By Mark Hinge
from shooting times
Inspired by the wild foods on his shoot, Mark Hinge cooks rabbit with nettles
Ingredients
• a rabbit • stinging nettle
tips • a handful of wild mint
• a handful of wild thyme
• mushrooms • smoked bacon
• salt and pepper
Method
1. Wearing a glove, harvest the tips of the nettles. Take the top inch, including the stalk tip, of the stinging nettles and fill a carrier bag about quarter-full. Wash thoroughly and then steam or blanch them in boiling water for a few minutes to remove the sting. Wash the mint and thyme and take the leaves off the stalks.
2. Roughly chop the mushrooms. Take a sheet of tin foil and place some nettles and herbs on to the foil, then season with salt and pepper. Take the jointed rabbit and layer it with the mushrooms, nettles and herbs and then a layer of bacon, seasoning as you go along. Make two or three layers. Finish the dish off with some of the nettles.
3. Wrap the tin foil loosely to make a parcel and place in an oven at 180°C for 35 to 40 minutes. After 25 minutes open the tin foil up, baste and leave the the foil open so that the meat can brown.
Tips
One jointed rabbit will serve four people. Use only young tender nettle shoots. If you can't find wild mint and thyme, use fresh herbs from the garden or even dried herbs. The nettles and their juices will give a slightly astringent taste to the meat and it is very refreshing as a clear sauce. Keep the boiled nettle water, as when it is cooled and chilled it is great to drink as a tea. It is supposed to have all kinds of good health qualities.