Brandy Jellied Cornish Game Hens Recipes

ROASTED CORNISH GAME HENS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• In a small mixing bowl, stir together salt, lemon pepper, dried basil and poultry seasoning. Rub olive oil all over the hens and season each with the salt mixture. Place the hens on a baking sheet pan with plenty of space between them. You may need to use 2 pans. Loosely stuff the cavities of each hen with some green bell pepper, celery and onion. Roast the hens in the preheated oven for about 1 hour or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 165 degrees F and the juices run clear. Remove the hens from the oven, loosely tent with foil and let rest 10 minutes before carving or serving.

CONTEST-WINNING ORANGE-GLAZED CORNISH HENS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to at 350°. Tie legs of each hen together; turn wing tips under backs. Place on a greased rack in a roasting pan. Brush with butter; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake, uncovered, for 1 hour., Meanwhile, in a saucepan, combine the remaining ingredients; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, until thickened, 15 minutes. Spoon over hens. Bake until a thermometer reads 170°, about 15 minutes longer.

BAKED CORNISH GAME HENS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• In a small bowl combine the 1/2 cup melted butter, onion, celery, bell pepper, mushrooms, garlic, basil, oregano and parsley.
• Season hens inside and out with salt and pepper to taste, then stuff with equal amounts butter/vegetable mixture. Place stuffed birds in a 9x13 inch baking dish, breast side up. Drizzle with 1/4 cup melted butter.
• Cover dish and bake in the preheated oven for 1 1/2 hours. Remove cover and brown at 500 degrees F (260 degrees C).

HERB-BRINED CORNISH GAME HENS

Steps:

• In a saucepan, combine the salt, brown sugar, peppercorns, sage, garlic, thyme, rosemary and 1 quart water. Bring to a boil. Cook and stir until salt and sugar are dissolved. Remove from the heat. Add the cold water to cool the brine to room temperature., Place a turkey-sized oven roasting bag inside a second roasting bag; add hens. Carefully pour cooled brine into bag. Squeeze out as much air as possible; seal bags and turn to coat. Place in a roasting pan. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours, turning occasionally. Drain and discard brine; pat hens dry., Meanwhile, place the peppercorns and garlic in a food processor; cover and pulse until coarsely chopped. Add the butter, 3 tablespoons olive oil and herbs; cover and process until smooth. With fingers, carefully loosen skin from hens; rub half the butter mixture under skin. Secure skin to underside of breast with toothpicks; tie drumsticks together. Rub remaining butter mixture over skin., In a 15x10x1-in. baking pan, toss the Brussels sprouts and onions with remaining olive oil, salt and pepper. Arrange in a single layer. Place hens, breast side up, on top of the vegetables. Bake at 450° until thermometer inserted in breast reads 165°, 35-40 minutes. Cover loosely with foil if hens brown too quickly., Remove hens and vegetables to a serving platter; cover and let stand for 10 minutes before carving. If desired, garnish with additional herbs.

BRANDY JELLIED CORNISH GAME HENS

Steps:

• Pre-heat oven to 375°F.
• Combine parsley, shallot, garlic, salt, pepper and 1/4 cup of butter. Stuff half of mixture into cavity of each hen and secure legs with kitchen twine.
• Place hens in pan breast side up and rub with the other 1/4 cup butter.
• Bake for approximately 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a saucepan, combine jelly and brandy and cook over low heat until the jelly melts.
• After hens have cooked 30 minutes, pour the jelly mixture over the hens and cook another 30 minutes, basting frequently.

CORNISH GAME HENS WITH CRAB APPLE-SAGE GLAZE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450°F. Starting at neck end of hens, slide fingers between skin and breasts to loosen skin. Place 2 sage leaves under skin of each breast half. Sprinkle hens with salt and pepper. Transfer hens, skin side up, to medium roasting pan. Roast hens 15 minutes. Meanwhile, simmer 1/3 cup wine, jelly, and shallots in heavy small saucepan until glaze is slightly thickened, about 6 minutes. Stir in chopped sage.
• Brush half of glaze on roasted hens. Roast hens 5 minutes more. Brush with remaining glaze. Roast until hens are cooked through and glaze is bubbling, about 5 minutes longer. Transfer to platter.
• Spoon off fat from juices in pan. Place roasting pan directly atop 2 burners over medium heat. Add remaining 1/3 cup wine and boil until liquid is reduced by 1/3, about 5 minutes. Season sauce with salt and pepper. Spoon over hens.

SAVORY CORNISH HENS WITH A BRANDY CURRANT GLAZE

Steps:

• Prepare the Hens -- Just rinse them well, inside and out, drain and pat try. Then add 1/4 cup butter, parsley, thyme, salt and pepper in a small bowl and melt the butter in the microwave for just a few seconds. Add in the oranges and onion quarters and toss well.
• Stuffing -- Add the orange, onion, butter and herb mix to the cavity of the hens.
• Skin -- Brush each of the hens with 1/4 cup of butter (not melted) and season with salt and pepper.
• Bake -- Place each of the hens on a couple of the onions slices in a small oven proof pan. The onion slices just make a natural baking rack so they don't sit directly on the pan itself. Bake at 425 for 10 minute and then reduce to 350 for about 20-30 minutes uncovered. NOTE: One reviewer wrote they were swimming in butter, but if you bake the hens on the onions used as a rack as suggested, they are not sitting in butter. The butter flavors the inside and outside, and remember, it is for 2 nice size birds. Also, the onions will absorb most of the butter and the natural juices will end up in the sauce at the end.
• NOTE: I used around a 1 3/4 - 2 1/2 lb hen, and then can take anywhere from 30-45 minutes. So just check and have your meat thermometer handy. This is one time when it really helps. I take mine out at 160, as it continues to cook once removed. The last time I cooked 4 for dinner they took 40 minutes. But just check to be sure.
• Glaze -- As the hens back, in a small measuring cup add the garlic, brandy and jelly and just heat until melted. You can also do this on the stove, but the microwave is easier, quicker and just a small cup to clean out vs another pot. Baste frequently with the glaze as the chicken cook.
• Sauce -- No I love the sauce for this but it is optional. Remove the chickens to a plate and cover with foil to let them rest. Bring the pan to the stove on medium heat and add the wine to deglaze. Get all the good dripping off the bottom of the pan. Add the broth and cook 3-4 minutes. Right before serving, just add the butter to thicken the sauce and serve with the chicken. This isn't a thick gravy, just a nice light sauce over the chicken.