Buttermilk Brined Cornish Hens Recipe 425

Steps:

• Rinse the Cornish hens under cool water, including the cavity. Pat dry with paper towels, set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, salt, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, cumin and lime juice. Place the hens breast side down and cover with plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator. Let the hens brine for at least 3 hours, or overnight. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Take the hens out of the brine and lightly pat dry with paper towels. Season the cavities with a little salt and pepper, and insert half a lemon and a sprig of thyme. Tie the legs together with kitchen twine. Brush the hens with melted butter, and season generously with salt and pepper. Place in a roasting pan. If you wish, you can surround the hens with red potatoes, brushed with butter and seasoned with salt and pepper. Place in the middle rack of the oven. Roast the hens for 50 minutes to 1 hour; until the skin is bronzed and the internal temperature in thickest part of the thigh is about 180°F.

Steps:

• In a saucepan, combine the salt, brown sugar, peppercorns, sage, garlic, thyme, rosemary and 1 quart water. Bring to a boil. Cook and stir until salt and sugar are dissolved. Remove from the heat. Add the cold water to cool the brine to room temperature., Place a turkey-sized oven roasting bag inside a second roasting bag; add hens. Carefully pour cooled brine into bag. Squeeze out as much air as possible; seal bags and turn to coat. Place in a roasting pan. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours, turning occasionally. Drain and discard brine; pat hens dry., Meanwhile, place the peppercorns and garlic in a food processor; cover and pulse until coarsely chopped. Add the butter, 3 tablespoons olive oil and herbs; cover and process until smooth. With fingers, carefully loosen skin from hens; rub half the butter mixture under skin. Secure skin to underside of breast with toothpicks; tie drumsticks together. Rub remaining butter mixture over skin., In a 15x10x1-in. baking pan, toss the Brussels sprouts and onions with remaining olive oil, salt and pepper. Arrange in a single layer. Place hens, breast side up, on top of the vegetables. Bake at 450° until thermometer inserted in breast reads 165°, 35-40 minutes. Cover loosely with foil if hens brown too quickly., Remove hens and vegetables to a serving platter; cover and let stand for 10 minutes before carving. If desired, garnish with additional herbs.

Steps:

• To make the brine: whisk together the buttermilk, paprika, onion powder, granulated garlic, salt and pepper. Pour brine over hen, cover and refrigerate several hours or over night. Discard brine and place hen in Crock Pot. Rough chop the potatoes and add to the Crock Pot along with carrots. Top with parsley, salt and pepper to taste. Cook on high for 4 hours or until meat thermometer reads 180 degrees.

Steps:

• Place parsley, rosemary, thyme, garlic, lemon, salt, and pepper in a food processor. Blend until finely chopped. With machine running, add olive oil.
• Loosen skin from the hens. Put 1 tablespoon of herb mixture under skin of each hen, smoothing to cover breasts. Place the birds on a large rimmed baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight.
• Remove hens from refrigerator and bring to room temperature (about 1 hour). Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Place hens on a clean rimmed baking sheet (it's okay if they touch). Brush butter over surface of hens and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Roast in oven, rotating pan once until golden brown and cooked through (meat thermometer should read 165 degrees when placed in the thigh), about 50 minutes.
• Remove from oven and let stand at least 15 minutes before placing on individual plates. No carving necessary!