Cornish Hen With Cherry Hazelnut Wine Sauce Recipes

CORNISH HEN WITH TART CHERRY SAUCE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Combine sea salt, black pepper, thyme, garlic powder, rosemary, and paprika in a bowl. Place hens on a baking sheet and evenly brush with 5 tablespoons butter. Rub hens with spice mixture.
• Bake hens in preheated oven until no longer pink at the bone and the juices run clear, about 1 1/2 hours, basting every 1/2 hour with white wine. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, near the bone should read 180 degrees F (82 degrees C).
• Mix cherries, red wine, orange juice, and brown sugar in a saucepan; bring to a boil for 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low, stir in 2 tablespoons butter, and cook until sugar is dissolved and butter is melted, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle flour into the sauce; whisk until thickened, 2 to 3 minutes. Drizzle cherry sauce over cooked hens.

CHUTNEY-GLAZED CORNISH HENS WITH HAZELNUTS AND DRIED-FRUIT STUFFING

Steps:

• Make the stuffing:
• In a large heavy skillet cook the shallot, the onion, and the garlic in the butter over moderate heat, stirring, until the vegetables are golden. Stir in the sage, the cloves, the raisins, the apricots, and salt and pepper to taste and cook the mixture, stirring, for 1 minute. Stir in the wine and boil the mixture until the liquid is evaporated. Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the bread cubes, the hazelnuts, and salt and pepper to taste. Let the mixture cool before stuffing the hens.
• Divide the stuffing among the cavities of the hens, packing the cavities loosely. Truss the hens, sprinkle them with salt and pepper, and arrange them so that they do not touch on the rack of a large, foil-lined broiler pan. Brush the hens with the butter and roast them in the upper third of a preheated 400°F. oven for 1 hour.
• While the hens are roasting, in a small saucepan combine the lemon juice, the chutney, and salt and pepper to taste, bring the glaze just to a boil, stirring, and in a blender or food processor purée it. Brush the hens with the glaze, roast them for 15 to 25 minutes more, or until they are golden brown and cooked through, and discard the trussing string.
• To toast and skin hazelnuts:
• Toast the hazelnuts in one layer in a baking pan in a preheated 350°F. oven for 10 to 15 minutes, or until they are colored lightly and the skins blister. Wrap the nuts in a kitchen towel and let them steam for 1 minute. Rub the nuts in the towel to remove as much of the skins as possible and let them cool.

CORNISH HEN WITH CHERRY-HAZELNUT WINE SAUCE

Steps:

• Toast the hazelnuts in a small, dry skillet over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until they are lightly browned and begin to smell toasty, 4 to 5 minutes. Watch carefully; nuts can burn quickly. Transfer to the folds of a clean dish towel to remove the skins while the nuts are still warm, then discard the skins and let the nuts cool. Coarsely chop the nuts.
• Using poultry shears or a very sharp knife, cut along each side of the hen's backbone and remove it. Turn the hen over on your cutting board, splay it out butterfly-style, and press on the breastbone to break it. Sprinkle it with salt and allspice then rub the yogurt all over it.
• Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until it starts to shimmer. Place the hen, meat side down, in the skillet and weight it down with a smaller skillet with a large can of tomatoes or other heavy object on top. (Or, do as I do, and use a heavy cast-iron bacon press, made for just this kind of thing.)
• Let the hen cook until the yogurt has formed a dark brown crust on the meat side, 5 to 10 minutes. Lift off the weight assembly, and use tongs to turn the hen over onto the bone side. Return the weights and cook until an internal thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh and the breast reads at least 165°F, another 5 to 6 minutes. Transfer to a plate and loosely cover with aluminum foil while you make the sauce.
• Pour the wine syrup into the skillet and use a spatula to scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the dried cherries and hazelnuts, stir to combine, and season with salt and pepper to taste. (If you're using wine instead of the syrup, pour it in, scrape up the browned bits from the pan, add the dried cherries and hazelnuts, then let the wine bubble and reduce by about half. Add the sugar to taste and continue reducing the sauce until it is thick and sticky, then season with salt and pepper to taste.)
• Remove the sauce from the heat, spoon the sauce over the hen, and eat.