Lemon Sage Cornish Game Hens With Tomato Porcini Sauce Recipes

CORNISH GAME HENS WITH SAFFRON, OLIVES, AND LEMON CONFIT

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Mix the ginger, saffron, olive oil, onion, and garlic together. Heat a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the oil mixture and cook until the onions soften, about 8 minutes.
• Carefully add 2 cups of water to the mix and bring to simmer. Add the hens, skin side down into and cook for 10 minutes at a very low simmer. Remove only the hens to a baking dish, keeping the sauce warm over a low heat. Put the hens in oven and bake until it is cooked through, about 45 minutes. Serve on warm plate, hens first, then garnish with lemon and olives. Pour reserved sauce over hens.

LEMON-SAGE CORNISH GAME HENS WITH TOMATO-PORCINI SAUCE

Steps:

• Combine 3/4 cup hot water and porcini mushrooms in small bowl. Let stand until mushrooms soften, about 30 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer mushrooms to work surface. Coarsely chop mushrooms. Set mushrooms and soaking liquid aside.
• Heat 2 tablespoons oil in heavy medium skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon chopped sage and garlic. Sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add puréed tomatoes, broth, chopped mushrooms and soaking liquid, leaving any sediment from liquid behind. Simmer over medium-low heat until thickened to sauce consistency, about 25 minutes. (Sauce can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)
• Preheat oven to 450°F. Pat hens dry with paper towels. Sprinkle cavities with salt and pepper. Place 1 sage sprig and 1 lemon wedge in cavity of each hen. Tie legs together to hold shape. Tuck wing tips under hen. Place hens on rack in large roasting pan. Rub remaining 2 tablespoons oil over hens. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon chopped sage over breast of each hen. Roast until hens are cooked through and juices run clear when thickest part of thigh is pierced, about 50 minutes. Transfer hens to platter. Tent with foil.
• Pour pan juices from roasting pan into 1-cup glass measuring cup, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of pan. Spoon fat off top of juices. Add pan juices to tomato sauce. Simmer 2 minutes to blend flavors. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper.
• Spoon Soft Polenta with Leeks onto 4 plates. Spoon tomato sauce over polenta. Place hens atop polenta and serve.

HONEY-LEMON-THYME CORNISH GAME HENS

Steps:

• Position an oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Rinse the hens well under cool running water. Pat them dry with paper towels.
• Melt the butter with the chopped fresh thyme in a small saucepan. In a small bowl, combine the juice of 4 lemons, honey, and soy sauce. Add the melted thyme butter and mix to combine. Reserve.
• Heat a large cast iron pan on medium heat. Coat the bottom of the pan with olive oil.
• Generously salt and pepper the hens and lay them skin-side down in the hot pan. Sear 4 minutes each side.
• Pour 1/3 of the glaze on the bottom of a 9 by 13 baking dish. Transfer the hens, and their pan drippings, to the baking dish. Pour the remaining glaze over the hens and place in the oven for 30 minutes or until a thermometer reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. Remove the dish from the oven and let them rest for about 5 minutes. Garnish with the sliced lemon and fresh thyme sprigs, and serve.

SOFT POLENTA WITH LEEKS

Steps:

• Melt 2 tablespoons butter in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add leeks; stir to coat. Cover and cook until leeks soften, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Add 2 1/4 cups water, broth and bay leaf. Bring to boil. Gradually whisk in polenta. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook until mixture is thick and creamy, stirring often and thinning with more water if necessary, about 35 minutes.
• Remove pan from heat. Discard bay leaf. Stir in remaining 1 tablespoon butter and Parmesan cheese. Season polenta to taste with salt and pepper. Divide polenta among plates.

CORNISH GAME HENS WITH SAGE AND GARLIC

Steps:

• Blend 3 Tbs of butter with the sage, garlic, lemon zest, salt and pepper.
• Separate breast and leg skin from hens.
• Press the mixture under the skins and spread evenly.
• Melt remaining butter and add paprika Brush this butter over the hens.
• Place hens in single layer in shallow oiled pan.
• Roast at 400 F, uncovered, 40 to 45 minutes.
• Baste twice with pan drippings.

LEMON-THYME CORNISH HENS

Steps:

• In an bowl, combine the first seven ingredients. Place hens on a rack in a shallow baking pan. Tuck wings under hen. Spoon half of butter sauce over hens. Bake, uncovered, at 425° for 40-45 minutes or until juices run clear and a thermometer reads 180°, basting occasionally with remaining sauce.

CORNISH HENS WITH LEMON AND HERBS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place hens in a roasting pan, breast sides up. Place 2 thyme sprigs and 1 lemon half in cavity of each hen. Loosen skin from breast, and place remaining thyme and the parsley underneath. Squeeze remaining lemon halves over hens. Rub butter all over hens. Season generously with salt and pepper.
• Roast hens, rotating pan halfway through, until skin turns golden brown and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 180 degrees, 45 to 50 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes. Cut hens in half lengthwise. Garnish with thyme sprigs, and serve with lemon wedges.

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.

LEMON HERB GAME HENS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°. Place hens in a roasting pan. Cut 1-1/2 lemons into six wedges. Rub a lemon wedge over each hen; place wedges in roasting pan. Peel and cut garlic cloves in half. Rub cut side of a garlic half over each hen; place in cavity with five additional garlic halves. Rub 2 tablespoons oil over each hen; sprinkle with onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper., In a small bowl, mix basil, rosemary and thyme. Sprinkle half over hens; place remaining herbs in cavities. Cut remaining lemons into 12 slices; place over hens. Roast 1-1/4-1-1/2 hours or until a thermometer inserted in thickest part of thigh reads 170°. ,

ORANGE GLAZED CORNISH HEN

Steps:

• Mix olive oil, 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard, lemon zest and juice, orange zest and juice, garlic, salt, and black pepper together in a large resealable bag. Add hens, seal bag, and coat hens with marinade. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, flipping the bag 1 or 2 times to redistribute marinade.
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).
• Mix orange juice, soy sauce, honey, 1/4 cup Dijon mustard, onion, ginger, and black pepper together in a bowl.
• Remove hens from marinade and transfer to a roasting pan, discarding leftover marinade.
• Roast hens in the preheated oven for 50 minutes. Brush hens with orange glaze and roast for 5 more minutes. Flip hens, brush with more glaze, and roast until meat is no longer pink in the center, about 5 more minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted near the bone should read 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).

GRILLED CORNISH HENS WITH TOMATO-ORANGE SAUCE

Steps:

• Brush grill rack with vegetable oil. Heat coals or gas grill for direct heat. With kitchen scissors, cut each hen in half along backbone from tail to neck.
• Brush hen halves with basil-flavored oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Insert barbecue meat thermometer so tip is in thickest part of inside thigh muscle and does not touch bone.
• Place hen halves, skin side down, on grill rack. Cover and grill over medium heat 30 to 40 minutes, brushing occasionally with basil-flavored oil and turning once, until juice of hens is clear when thickest pieces are cut to bone (at least 165°F). Let stand loosely covered about 15 minutes before serving.
• While hens are grilling, make sauce. In 1-quart saucepan, heat all sauce ingredients except basil to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer uncovered about 25 minutes or until sauce thickens slightly. Stir in basil. Simmer 5 minutes. Serve warm with hens.

ROAST CORNISH HENS WITH ROSEMARY, POTATOES, LEMONS & WINE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Brush the chicken or game hens liberally with some of the olive oil and season with salt and pepper inside and out. Sprinkle with paprika.
• Place the lemon quarters in the cavity, giving each (lemon) a little squeeze to release the oil from the skins.
• Season the potatoes with salt and pepper and toss them with the rest of the olive oil and the rosemary leaves. Spread them around the chicken in a large baking pan.
• Fold a piece of aluminum foil double into a rectangle about the size of the chicken. Grease it down the middle, making a little tent, and lay the foil loosely over the breast.
• Roast the chicken for 45 minutes, basting 2 to 3 times with the fat in the pan.
• Add the wine (it will quickly evaporate in the hot oven, leaving a lovely flavor in the potatoes), remove the foil, and cook for 15 to 20 more minutes.
• If the breast is not browned enough, turn on the broiler for a few seconds to crisp the skin, but watch carefully so as not to burn your masterpiece.
• Carve the large chicken or split the game hens and serve with the potatoes and the pan juices poured over the chicken.