Roast Rock Cornish Game Hen (recipe)

From The American Peoples Cookbook, 1956:

Roast Rock Cornish Game Hen

Set out a shallow roasting pan with a rack.

Prepare and set aside for stuffing Wild Rice with Mushrooms (one-half recipe, page 305; add all mushrooms to rice)

Clean 4 Rock Cornish game hens, about 1 lb. each
Rinse and pat dry with absorbent paper.

Rub cavities of the four hens with
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon Accent
Lightly fill body cavities with the stuffing. To close body cavities, sew or skewer and lace with cord. Fasten neck skin to backs and wings to bodies with skewers. Put game hens breast-side up on rack in roasting pan.

Set out
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
Brush each hen with the butter.

Roast uncovered at 350*F.

Frequently baste hens during roasting period with drippings from roasting pan.

Roast 1 to 1.5 hours, or until hens test done. To test doneness, move leg gently by grasping end bone; drumstick-thigh joint moves easily when hens are done. (Protect fingers from heat with paper napkin.)

Place game hen on a heated platter; keep warm while preparing gravy. Before serving, remove skewers and garnish hens with
Sprigs of water cress

For Gravy - Prepare
1/2 cup quick meat broth (page 13)
Set aside to cool.

Leaving brown residue in roasting pan, pour the drippings into a bowl. Allow fat to rise to surface; skim off fat and reserve. Remaining drippings are meat juices which should be used as part of the liquid in the gravy. Measure into roasting pan 1.5 tablespoons of the reserved fat. Blend in
1.5 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon Accent
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Stirring constantly, heat until the mixture bubbles. Remove from heat and add gradually, stirring constantly and vigorously, the broth and 1/2 cup of the drippings. Return to heat and bring mixture rapidly to boiling, stirring constantly. Cook 1 to 2 min. longer. While stirring, scrape bottom and sides of pan to blend in brown residue. Remove from heat and stir in
2 tablespoons Madeira wine
Pour into a gravy boat and serve hot.

4 servings
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Wild Rice with Mushrooms

Set out a medium-size skillet.

Bring to boiling in a deep saucepan
3 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon Accent
Meanwhile, wash in a colander or sieve
1 cup wild rice
Add rice gradually to water so that boiling will not stop. Boil rapidly, covered, 30 to 40 min., or until a kernel of rice is entirely tender when pressed between the fingers. Drain rice in a colander or sieve.

If necessary to keep rice warm, place colander over hot water and cover with folded towel.

While rice is cooking, clean and slice
1/2 lb. mushrooms
Heat in the skillet
1/4 cup butter
Add mushrooms with
2 tablespoons finely chopped onion
Cook slowly, occasionally turning and moving gently with a spoon, until mushrooms are lightly browned. Remove from heat and reserve about 1/4 cup mushrooms for garnish. Combine remaining mushrooms, onion, wild rice, and
1/3 cup butter, melted
Toss gently until mushrooms and butter are evenly distributed throughout rice. Turn hot mixture into a warm serving dish and garnish with reserved mushrooms. 6 to 8 servings

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Prepare quick broth - dissolve in 1 cup hot water, 1 chicken bouillon cube for quick chicken broth or 1 beef bouillon cube or 1/2 teaspoon concentrated meat extract for quick meat broth.

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Okay, so here is my summary of changes. First off, Accent turns out to just be MSG (monosodium glutamate), so I completely skipped that throughout the recipe.

I had to use a lot more water than called for in the wild rice, because it kept boiling off. Just keep adding small amounts of water and continue boiling it until tender.

I skipped the water cress garnish.

I used salted butter because that is what I had on hand, and I figured if I was skipping all the MSG a little extra salt would help with flavors.

I used chicken bouillon instead of beef.

I used Sherry instead of madeira wine. If you wish to skip alcohol completely, you can substitute in a bit of reduced balsamic vinegar with beef broth... experiment with the amounts until you get the flavor to be pleasing to your palate.

My husband loved the wild rice stuffing and has requested that I make it on it's own as a side dish with chicken. I hope you try out this recipe too!