Roasted Cornish Hens with Mushroom-Crème Fraîche Sauce
 
Makes 6 servings
Ingredients
  • ¼ cup kosher salt
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 6 (about 1¼ pounds each) Cornish hens, giblets removed
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • Mushroom-Crème Fraîche Sauce (recipe follows)
  • Garnish: fresh thyme sprigs, roasted garlic (see Kitchen Tip)
Instructions
  1. In a small bowl, combine salt, sugar, and pepper. Reserve 1 tablespoon salt mixture.
  2. In a large baking dish, place hens; rub remaining salt mixture onto hens. Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours.
  3. Rinse hens; pat dry with paper towels.
  4. Preheat oven to 375°. Spray a large rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray. Place hens on prepared pan. Brush with oil. Sprinkle with reserved 1 tablespoon salt mixture. Tie legs together with kitchen twine.
  5. Bake until a meat thermometer inserted in thickest portion registers 165°, about 45 minutes. Let rest for 10 minutes. Serve with Mushroom-Crème Fraîche Sauce. Garnish with thyme and roasted garlic, if desired.
Notes
Kitchen Tip: To roast garlic, cut ½ inch of top end of 3 garlic heads, keeping cloves intact. Place each head of garlic, cut side up, on a sheet of foil. Drizzle each with 2 teaspoons oil, and wrap in foil. Place on prepared pan with hens. Bake until softened and browned, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Let cool and spread garlic pulp onto French bread, using as desired.
Recipe by Southern Lady Magazine at https://southernladymagazine.com/roasted-cornish-hens-with-mushroom-creme-fraiche-sauce-recipe/