Roast Poussin With Prunes And Thyme Recipes

THYME-ROASTED POUSSIN

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.
• Rinse the poussins and season the cavities with salt and pepper. Rub each with 1/4 teaspoon olive oil. Fill each cavity with a lemon wedge, 2 sprigs each of thyme and marjoram, and 1 crushed garlic clove.
• Loosen the skin from the breast of each poussin. Slide a sprig each of thyme and marjoram between the skin and the breast. Spoon the Cognac (1/2 tablespoon per bird) into the breast pockets of each poussin. Truss with kitchen string.
• On a roasting rack set in a roasting pan, roast for 30 minutes, or until the juices run clear when the thigh is pierced with a fork.

ROASTED PORK TENDERLOIN WITH FRESH PLUM SAUCE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Generously season pork tenderloin with salt and black pepper.
• Heat oil in a large, oven-proof skillet over medium-high heat. Cook tenderloin until browned on all sides, 2 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer tenderloin to a plate.
• Saute onion with a pinch of salt in the same skillet until just softening, 3 to 5 minutes. Add shallots, reduce heat to medium, and cook and stir until shallots and onion are golden brown and caramelized, about 10 minutes.
• Stir thyme into onion mixture; place tenderloin over onion mixture, and set plum quarters, skin-side down, around pork tenderloin. Transfer skillet to preheated oven.
• Cook until pork is slightly pink in the center, about 20 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 145 degrees F (63 degrees C). Transfer pork and plums to a plate.
• Place skillet over medium-high heat and pour water and balsamic vinegar into onion mixture. Bring mixture to a boil while scraping the browned bits of food off of the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Cook and stir until liquid is reduced by half, 5 to 10 minutes; remove from heat. Whisk butter into mixture until melted and sauce is shiny. Pour sauce over pork and plums.

PORK LOIN WITH APPLES, PRUNES, AND MUSTARD CREAM SAUCE

Steps:

• Put oven rack in lower third of oven and preheat oven to 375°F.
• Halve pork loin crosswise, then pat dry and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt and 3/4 teaspoon pepper (total). Heat oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then brown pork, 1 piece at a time, turning occasionally, 6 to 8 minutes per piece. Transfer to a small flameproof roasting pan as browned (do not clean skillet) and roast pork until thermometer inserted diagonally at least 2 inches into meat registers 150°F, 40 to 50 minutes.
• While pork roasts, peel, quarter, and core apples, then cut into 1/4-inch-thick wedges. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon fat from skillet, then cook onion in skillet over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add apples, prunes, broth, and water and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until apples are tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Stir in cream and mustard and simmer until sauce is slightly thickened, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat and keep sauce warm, partially covered.
• Transfer pork to a cutting board and let stand 10 minutes. Add wine to roasting pan and boil over high heat, stirring and scraping up brown bits, until reduced to about 1/4 cup, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir pan juices into cream sauce along with remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt and remaining 3/4 teaspoon pepper and heat sauce over moderate heat, stirring, until hot.
• Discard string from pork and cut each half crosswise into 4 slices. Serve pork with sauce.

LEMON ROAST POUSSIN WITH SPRING VEGETABLES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 220C/fan 200C/ gas 7. Season the inside of the poussins generously with salt and pepper, then stuff each with a garlic clove, half a bunch of thyme and a lemon half.
• Sit the birds in a shallow roasting dish. Smother generously with butter, then season the skin with sea salt and black pepper. Roast in the oven for about 40 mins.
• While the birds are roasting, prepare the accompaniments. For the braised peas and lettuce, heat a frying pan and add a drizzle of oil. Sizzle the bacon for 2 mins until starting to crisp. Turn down the heat a little, toss in the onions, then continue to cook for 6-7 mins until they are golden.
• Pour the chicken stock into the pan, simmer for 2 mins, then scatter in the peas and cook for 2 mins more. Lastly, stir in the lettuce and cook for 1 min until just wilted, then set aside.
• For the spring vegetables, bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and have a bowl of iced water at the ready. In batches, boil all the veg (except the radishes), then transfer to the iced water. The courgettes will take 3 mins, the carrots and leeks 2 mins. Drain the vegetables, then lay them on kitchen paper to dry.
• Heat a drizzle of olive oil in another frying pan, then stir-fry the vegetables until just starting to colour. Add the vinegar, lemon zest and a little seasoning. Turn off the heat, toss through the radishes, then drizzle with a little more oil.
• Check if the poussins are cooked by inserting a skewer or small knife between the leg and the breast; if the juices are pink, give the bird an extra 5-10 minutes in the oven. Once ready, remove the poussins from the dish and leave to rest, upside down, for 10 mins (this keeps the breasts from drying out). To make a simple gravy, remove the lemon halves from the poussins, squeeze into the juices in the roasting dish, then whisk together.
• Strain the lemony juices into a jug. You are now ready to carve the birds and plate up.
• Using a sharp knife, cut through the thigh joint and remove the leg. Cut each leg through the joint to separate the drumstick from the thigh. Carefully carve the breasts away from the bone, cutting through the joint to leave the wing attached. Carve each breast into 2 pieces so each portion has 2 pieces of leg and 2 pieces of breast.
• Spoon a mound of the braised peas and lettuce into the centre of 4 large, shallow, bowls. Neatly assemble a 'nest' of vegetables around the lettuce. Pile the carved poussin on top of the lettuce, giving each serving the same amount of meat. Pour over the lemony sauce and serve straight away.

LOIN OF PORK WITH PRUNES

Steps:

• With a sharp knife, make a deep incision lengthwise along the thickest part of the meat. Spread the meat apart, and stuff the prunes into this opening. Sprinkle lightly with nutmeg, then press the meat together again and tie securely. Rub with the thyme and salt and pepper. Place on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Roast in a 325°F. oven allowing about 23-25 minutes per pound, until the internal temperature reaches 165°F. when tested with a meat thermometer. Baste often with the pan juices and some of the wine marinade from the prunes. Serve with crisp sautéed potatoes, a good salad and a rosé wine or chilled champagne.

ROAST PORK WITH PRUNES

Steps:

• Simmer the prunes in one cup wine plus water to cover for 20 minutes, covered. Cool.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Season the pork loin with salt and pepper. Stuff the prunes, thyme and garlic into the pork (you do not need to untie the roast, simply push the prunes inside the openings). Roast the pork on a rack in a covered roasting pan for about two-and-a-half hours, or until the meat is tender. Any leftover prunes can be placed in the bottom of the roasting pan after the meat has cooked for an hour.
• Remove the meat from the pan to a serving dish. Transfer the cooking juices and any loose prunes to a small saucepan. Skim off the excess fat and add the remaining wine and chicken stock. Bring to boil, season to taste and serve in a heated sauceboat.