Cornish Game Hens Basted With A Compound Butter 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.

BUTTERFLIED CORNISH HENS WITH SAGE BUTTER

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
• Place hens on a sheet tray fitted with a cooling rack in the refrigerator to dry skin out for 1 hour. Meanwhile, in a small pan over medium heat, melt butter with sage, zest, salt and pepper. Remove hens from refrigerator. Preheat 2 large saute pans over medium heat, lightly coat with oil. Season hens with salt and pepper and sear, skin side down, in the pans. Sear until skin caramelizes and turns golden brown and crispy, about 7 to 10 minutes. Flip birds over, and baste with sage butter. Sprinkle tops with chopped bacon and place in preheated oven to finish cooking, 25 to 30 minutes, basting occasionally. Let rest 10 minutes before serving.

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).

CORNISH GAME HENS

Steps:

• Place hens on a rack in a shallow baking pan. Tie legs with kitchen string if desired. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Combine the butter, orange juice and honey; spoon over hens. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 1 hour or until a thermometer reads 165° and juices run clear, basting every 15 minutes., In a small saucepan, combine the orange juice, honey and vinegar. Combine cornstarch and water until smooth; stir into orange juice mixture. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 1 minute or until thickened. Serve with hens.

BARBECUED CORNISH HENS

Steps:

• Rub Cornish hens with butter; sprinkle salt and pepper inside cavity and over skin. Place on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 30 minutes., Meanwhile, combine the remaining ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Baste hens with sauce. Bake 45 minutes longer or until juices run clear and a thermometer reads 180°, basting frequently.

BROILED CORNISH GAME HENS

Steps:

• PREHEAT 450°F BROILER!
• Remove any giblets and rinse cavity and hen well and pat dry.
• Split hens in half vertically.
• Sprinkle both sides of each half hen with lemon pepper.
• Place skin side down in foil covered broiler pan.
• Place 1 T butter on each cavity half; pour 1 T lemon juice over each half.
• Broil 7 inches away from heat.
• Broil 5 minutes then baste.
• Broil 15 minutes longer.
• Turn hen over; baste and broil 15 minutes, basting 1 to 2 times.
• Place pineapple around hens and sprinkle with sugar. (Be sure to put in the juice). Broil 5 minutes.
• Mix parsley with rice.
• Serve hens over the rice with pineapple slices and drippings for gravy.
• Serve with lemon wedges or slices for garnish as well as for more lemon flavor on hens.

CORNISH GAME HENS WITH GARLIC AND ROSEMARY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).
• Rub hens with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Lightly season hens with salt and pepper. Place 1 lemon wedge and 1 sprig rosemary in cavity of each hen. Arrange in a large, heavy roasting pan, and arrange garlic cloves around hens. Roast in preheated oven for 25 minutes.
• Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). In a mixing bowl, whisk together wine, chicken broth, and remaining 2 tablespoons of oil; pour over hens. Continue roasting about 25 minutes longer, or until hens are golden brown and juices run clear. Baste with pan juices every 10 minutes.
• Transfer hens to a platter, pouring any cavity juices into the roasting pan. Tent hens with aluminum foil to keep warm. Transfer pan juices and garlic cloves to a medium saucepan and boil until liquids reduce to a sauce consistency, about 6 minutes. Cut hens in half lengthwise and arrange on plates. Spoon sauce and garlic around hens. Garnish with rosemary sprigs, and serve.

CORNISH GAME HENS WITH CRANBERRY SAUCE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
• Put the game hens in a shallow, flameproof baking dish without crowding. Rub the hens all over with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cut the onion in half and place the halves, cut side down, around the hens. Arrange the gizzards and livers around the hens.
• Place the baking dish with hens on top of the stove over low heat. Turn the hens around in the dish to coat with the oil. Arrange the hens on their sides. Place in the oven and bake 15 minutes, basting often.
• Turn the hens to other side and continue baking 15 minutes, basting often.
• Turn the hens breast side up and continue baking about 10 minutes, basting often.
• Transfer the hens to a heated serving platter and cover with foil to keep warm.
• Skim off most of the fat from the pan liquid in the baking dish. Put the baking dish on top of the stove and bring the pan liquid to a boil. Add the wine and stir to dissolve any brown particles that may cling to the bottom of the pan. Strain the sauce into a saucepan and bring to a boil. Cook down to about half and add the honey, chicken broth and tomato paste. Stir. Add any liquid that has accumulated inside or around the hens. Add the cranberries and bring to a boil.
• Cook until the cranberries pop, about 3 minutes, stirring often. Swirl in the butter. Add salt and pepper. Pour the sauce over the hens and serve.

CORNISH GAME HENS UNDER A BRICK

Steps:

• Garlic Oil: Gently heat garlic and oil in a small saucepan for 5 minutes, until bubbles form on top; turn heat off and add bay leaves and peppercorns.
• Steep and cool; can be kept, refrigerated, for 2 weeks.
• Cornish Hen: Cut the hen along its backbone with kitchen shears; butterfly with hands; sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• In a nonstick skillet large enough to hold the flattened hen, heat the oil over medium heat; add the hen, skin side down and weight down evenly with an aluminum foil-wrapped brick.
• Cook, turning every 2-3 minutes until golden brown and cooked through; remove hen to serving plate (s).
• Pour the wine into the skillet, add the thyme and reduce over high heat, scraping up browned bits, until thickened; pour over hen and serve immediately, drizzling with Garlic Oil if desired.