Marmalade Glazed Cornish Game Hens & Sausage Dressing
Ingredients
4 Cornish Game Hens (room temperature this takes about 1 hour)
Sausage Dressing Ingredients:
* 1/2 lb sausage I opt for an italian spicy sausage from our local butcher Sanagan’s Meat Locker. They add lots of fennel and kick – the results are great. Really, it depends on taste.
* 5 cups bread crumbs (I use a plain country white that has been ripped apart and left to dry for a couple of days – you could combine wheat and white 50/50 if you like)
* 1/3 cup stock (prepare 1/2 cup just in case)
* 1 medium onion finely diced
* 1/2 bunch celery finely diced (use the inside stalks – I try to avoid the fibrous ones)
* 1/2 stick of butter
* 1/2 teaspoon of Bell’s poultry seasoning
* salt to taste
Glaze Ingredients:
* 1/3 cup of Orange Marmalade (I make my own – Alton Brown has a great recipe: check it out here)
* 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
* 1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce
* 2 tablespoons of butter
* 1/2 tsp of hot sauce (your pick – you can eliminate if you don’t like a kick)
* Sea Salt
Preparation
1
Sausage Dressing Directions:
2
Melt butter in large cast iron pan on medium low heat.
3
Gently sautee celery until it starts to look a bit soft (aprox. 5 minutes).
4
Add onions and sautee until translucent.
5
In a large bowl gently fold the onions, celery and melted butter with the bread crumbs until just mixed.
6
Brown sausage in the same pan used for the celery and onions
7
Gently fold the sausage into the bread mixture until evenly distributed (do not squash the bread – it will make the dressing pasty)
8
To moisten the dressing I use about 1/3 cup of stock (my Momma always uses the gizzards to make this) and toss again.
9
I prepare 1/2 cup of stock to make sure I have enough for the desired result.
10
Directions Glaze:
11
Mix the orange marmalade with apple cider vinegar, butter, Worcestershire and hot sauce over medium heat
12
Bring to a boil until reduced just slightly
13
Directions Hens:
14
Preheat oven to 450 degrees
15
With a very sharp knife and your fingers carefully loosen the skin from the meat
16
Take softened butter and spread under and over the skin and salt liberally
17
Stuff the birds with the sausage dressing and tie the legs together
18
Roast in the over for about 25 minutes at 450 degrees
19
Take out of the oven and reduce the heat to 350 degrees
20
Using a basting brush spread the marmalade on the hens
21
Baste the hens every 10 minutes with the marmalade for about 30 minutes
22
For larger birds you may want to tack on another 15 minutes – smaller birds may be ready faster
23
The hens should be golden and glossy when done
24
Let them rest for about 10 minutes before serving to make sure they are super juicy
.
About
Succulent oven roasted cornish game hens, glazed with marmalade and stuffed with old fashioned sausage dressing. Just in time for Autumn.
Yield:
4 servings
Added:
Saturday, September 19, 2015 - 3:29pm
