Best Cornish Hen With Tart Cherry Sauce Recipes

CORNISH GAME HENS WITH PORT CHERRY SAUCE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Rinse hens thoroughly and cut in half along the breastbone. Place halves, skin side up, in a shallow baking dish coated with cooking spray. Season with salt, pepper and dried thyme.
• Place in oven and roast for approximately 40 minutes to an hour, until skin is nicely browned. For extra color, brush with melted better during last 15 minutes.
• In a medium saucepan, combine port, chicken broth, cornstarch mixture, raspberry preserves, and dried cherries.
• When hens are done cooking, remove from oven and let them rest on counter. Add pan drippings to the port mixture. Bring to a boil and simmer until desired consistency is reached. Add more preserves if the sauce is too tart. (The sauce can actually be made/reduced ahead of time - just reheat when pan drippings are added). Add more water or chicken broth if the sauce is too thick. Season with salt and pepper if needed.
• Serve with sauce spooned over hens.

CHERRY-BALSAMIC CORNISH HEN WITH RICE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375°F. Remove and discard neck and giblets from game hen. With kitchen scissors, cut game hen in half.
• In ungreased 11x7-inch (2-quart) glass baking dish, combine rice with seasoning from package, cherries, almonds and water; mix well. Top with game hen halves, skin side up; sprinkle with garlic-pepper blend and salt.
• In small bowl, combine preserves and vinegar; mix well. Brush about half of mixture over game hen halves. Cover with foil.
• Bake covered at 375°F. for 30 minutes.
• Uncover baking dish; brush game hen halves with remaining preserves mixture. Bake uncovered an additional 25 to 30 minutes or until game hen is fork-tender and juices run clear, and rice is tender.