Sunday Supper: Roast Cornish Game Hen

For this week’s Sunday Supper I made Roasted Cornish Game Hens with Creamy Polenta and Caramelized Savoy Cabbage. I am only posting the game hen recipe for the sake of time, but if you would like either of the other two recipes please let me know. (I’ll be lazy and e-mail you a scanned picture of the recipe!) I was very excited because this was our first meal at our new dining set! We have had the table for over a year, but were borrowing my parent’s chairs while living in Sacramento. When we moved, I chose not to take my parent’s chairs, and I FINALLY had new dining chairs delivered last week! It is so nice not eating on the couch.

All three recipes were from my Ad Hoc cookbook. Now if you have never been to Ad Hoc, you should go. It is Mark and my favorite restaurant we have eaten as thus far. The owner is Thomas Keller who also owns The French Laundry and Bouchon. All three restaurants are in Yountville. The French Laundry is a three Michelin star restaurant, and we have not saved up the funds to dine there yet haha (one day!). Bouchon recently earned its first Michelin star. Mark and I ate there on our honeymoon and it was amazing. Bouchon features classical French food and amazing wines (it IS in Yountville after all!). Now Ad Hoc is also owned by Thomas Keller, so you know the caliber of food prepared is spectacular. Ad Hoc is a fun and casual restaurant featuring traditional, usually American style home cooked meals. But a type of “home cooked” you’ve never experienced before. It is incredibly delicious. The other thing we love about this restaurant is how casual and laid back it is. If you know anything about Mark and me you know we love to relax and be casual, big to do’s are not really our thing.  It is perfectly acceptable to wear jeans and a T-shirt in this restaurant. It is also fun because the banquet seating allows you the opportunity to meet the others diners near you. (We have met some interesting people in that place!) Anyways, this whole paragraph is just trying to convince you to visit Ad Hoc if you are ever in Yountville.

The Game Hen recipe was INCREDIBLY easy to make. The meat turned out moist and flavorful and I did not have to baste it once! Also, I didn’t bother trussing the bird because I didn’t have any kitchen twine. This is a great recipe to half or double depending on the number of people you are feeding. My game hen was HUGE (almost 2 lbs.) so I only cooked one hen for Mark and me to share. It was plenty. If you are fortunate enough to find Poussin or super small game hens, do make one per person. The entire recipe took me about 90 minutes to prep and cook, which isn’t terrible. Here is the recipe:

Roast Poussins or Cornish Hens (serves 6)

Ingerdients:

Six 1.25 pound poussins or Cornish game hens

Gremolata Butter:

1 teaspoon black peppercorns

zest of 2 lemons

2 large cloves garlic, grated with Microplane or minced

12 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons parsley, finely chopped

1 teaspoon kosher salt

kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

canola oil

6 cloves garlic, smashed, skin left on

1 bunch thyme

fleur de sel

Directions:

Remove the poussins or hens from the refrigerator and set aside while you make the butter.

Using the pestle, grind the peppercorns in a mortar (or put them in a heavy-duty plastic bag and crush with a meat pounder or heavy pan). Add the lemon zest and garlic and mix into a paste. Put the butter in a medium bowl and mix in the pepper mixture, followed by the lemon juice, parsley and salt. Mix together until smooth and chill.

Remove the neck and innards if they are still in the cavities of the poussins or game hens, and discard. Rinse the inside of the birds and dry well with paper towels. Season the inside of the birds with salt and pepper. Cut out the wishbones. Leave any fat or skin at the neck attached, and trim any other excess fat.

Starting at the cavity end of each bird, carefully run your fingers between the skin and the flesh of the breasts and then the thighs to loosen the skin. Spread about 1/2 tablespoon of the butter under the skin of each thigh and spread the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter under each side of the breast.

Truss the birds. Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes, or until they come to room temperature.

Preheat the oven to 450F. Brush the birds with canola oil and season with salt. Place the birds on their backs in a roasting pan that will hold the birds in a single layer. Scatter the garlic and thyme evenly around them.

Transfer to the oven and roast for 25 to 30 minutes; the temperature should register 160F in the meatiest portions of the bird (the thighs and under the breast where the thigh meets the breast), and the juices should run clear. If necessary, baste the birds, return to the oven, and roast; check every 5 minutes.

Set a cooling rack over a baking sheet. Transfer the birds, along with the garlic and thyme to the rack. Baste the birds with the pan juices, and let rest for 15 minutes.

Serve the birds whole, or cut into halves or quarters. Arrange on a serving platter, garnish with the thyme and garlic, and sprinkle with fleur de sel.