When us Americans start planning a holiday meal, we usually start with the meat– turkey, a ham, the odd duck or tenderloin. However, Claudia Teague is here to shake up your dinner plans with Dustin Michael’s Brown Sugar and Sage Cornish Hens. Get ready to have a new holiday favorite!
INGREDIENTS
4 Cornish Hens
2 cups Dark Brown Sugar
2 TBSP Rubbed Sage
2 TBSP Cumin
2 TBSP Ancho Chili Powder
2 TBSP Salt
2 tsp Cracked Black Pepper
2 stalks Celery
1 large Orange (quartered)
2 Shallots
2 TBSP Olive Oil
METHOD
Preheat oven to 450°. Mix all dry ingredients to create a rub. Quarter orange, dust in the rub and set aside. Massage olive oil over Cornish hen, then massage in the rub. Cut stalks of celery in half and shallots into quarters; stuff into hen cavity. Close the cavity with the dusted orange quarters. Use a black, cast iron skillet or line a sheet pan with heavy duty foil. Bake for 30 minutes, and then turn down the oven to 300° and cook for another 30 minutes. Tent the Cornish hens with foil, if necessary, so the skin does not burn.
Claudia Teague’s Cornish Hens
