Festive Stuffed Cornish Game Hens Recipe

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Festive Stuffed Cornish Game Hens Recipe photo by Taste of Home

Festive Stuffed Cornish Game Hens Recipe

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These plump golden birds decorate holiday platters beautifully. Crusty ciabatta bread, moistened by juicy orange sections, makes wonderful stuffing.—Lisa Speer, Palm Beach, Florida

Recommended: 52 Vintage Christmas Dishes Worth Trying Today

MAKES:

4 servings

TOTAL TIME:

Prep: 30 min. Bake: 1 hour + standing

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VERIFIED BY Taste of Home Test Kitchen

CONTEST WINNER

MAKES:

4 servings

TOTAL TIME:

Prep: 30 min. Bake: 1 hour + standing

Ingredients

1/2 cup chopped sweet onion
1/4 cup chopped celery
2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 garlic clove, minced
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
3/4 teaspoon pepper, divided
2 cups cubed ciabatta bread
3 medium navel oranges, peeled and sectioned
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup chopped pecans, toasted
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
4 Cornish game hens (20 to 24 ounces each)
1/2 cup orange juice

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°. In a large skillet, saute onion and celery in butter and 1 tablespoon oil until tender. Add the garlic, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; cook 1 minute longer.
In a large bowl, combine the bread, oranges, cranberries, pecans and orange zest. Add onion mixture; toss to coat.
Loosely stuff hens with stuffing. Tuck wings under hens; tie drumsticks together. Rub with remaining oil; sprinkle with remaining salt and pepper. Place breast side up on a rack in a shallow roasting pan.
Roast 1 to 1-1/2 hours or until a thermometer reads 165° when inserted in center of stuffing and the thigh reaches at least 180°, basting hens occasionally with orange juice. Cover loosely with foil if hens brown too quickly. Cover and let stand 10 minutes before serving. Yield: 4 servings.

Originally published as Festive Stuffed Cornish Game Hens in Country Woman December/January 2011, p40

1/2 cup chopped sweet onion
1/4 cup chopped celery
2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 garlic clove, minced
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
3/4 teaspoon pepper, divided
2 cups cubed ciabatta bread
3 medium navel oranges, peeled and sectioned
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup chopped pecans, toasted
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
4 Cornish game hens (20 to 24 ounces each)
1/2 cup orange juice

Preheat oven to 350°. In a large skillet, saute onion and celery in butter and 1 tablespoon oil until tender. Add the garlic, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; cook 1 minute longer.
In a large bowl, combine the bread, oranges, cranberries, pecans and orange zest. Add onion mixture; toss to coat.
Loosely stuff hens with stuffing. Tuck wings under hens; tie drumsticks together. Rub with remaining oil; sprinkle with remaining salt and pepper. Place breast side up on a rack in a shallow roasting pan.
Roast 1 to 1-1/2 hours or until a thermometer reads 165° when inserted in center of stuffing and the thigh reaches at least 180°, basting hens occasionally with orange juice. Cover loosely with foil if hens brown too quickly. Cover and let stand 10 minutes before serving. Yield: 4 servings.