The Seahawks have had their fill of felines this season, going 2-1 with the winners Pulled Pork and French Toast followed by a losing Minestrone soup (which despite the loss was REALLY good0. Up next: the Arizona Cardinals!
Like the feline foes, the mascot here is definitely not on the menu—although edible, it is highly illegal to eat Cardinals so that’s out. But birds of another species—why not? The game this week is early afternoon so dinner will go in the oven at halftime and be ready to eat and hopefully enjoy while reveling in a Seahawks victory.
The closest thing to a Cardinal in the chicken line is a Cornish Game Hen, so that is what we are going to do, with a southwest spice treatment. A whole hen is a very filling dinner so we’ll just do a light salad as a side. Easy-peasy!
I am a little late getting this post together because I spent the better part of yesterday at a local food show. Among the items I picked up was a Chipotle Cocoa spice blend which I am featuring here (created by Rachael Mae).
Roasted Chipotle Cocoa Cornish Hens
Marinade
1/4 C Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon minced garlic
2 Tablespoons Chipotle Cocoa rub (or southwest spice combo)
1/4 C Apple Cider vinegar (or some other acid—could be wine, lemon or lime juice)
2 Cornish Game Hens (fresh if possible or completely thawed if, like me, you can usually only find frozen available).
Method
Mix the marinade ingredients together. About 2 hours before you want to cook the game hens (eg, at kickoff) coat the game hens in the marinade, cover, and refrigerate.
About 2 hours before you want to eat, turn the oven on to 350 and prep the hens for the oven: sprinkle some salt and pepper in the cavity, place the birds breast-side UP in a roasting pan, and baste with marinade. Put the pan into the warmed oven and roast for UP TO 1.5 hours, basting with pan juices after the first half-hour. At 1 hour check with a meat thermometer for doneness—if your birds are on the small size they may be done. The thermometer should read at least 165. If the birds are getting nice and crispy on top, tent with foil for the remaining cooking time.
When the hens are done, remove from the oven and tent with foil to “rest” for 15-20 minutes, while you make the salad/prep the sides.
(My salad is going to feature a couple of other items picked up at the food show: some home-grown butter lettuce with a raspberry and black pepper vinaigrette from Okanagan Wineland Dressings, and some chopped Raspberry and balsamic pralined almonds from Traditional Praline West Kelowna, BC. I may or may not add a bit of grated carrot for color.)
Enjoy!
Ready for marinating in the Fridge
Out of the oven:
Plated with salad:
Crackers!!
In the image above there are some crackers on the plate. These are crackers made with sourdough discard with the Chipotle Cocoa blend for seasoning. SOO good—crispy and tasty with no added salt. I have just started making crackers with my sourdough discard and I don’t think I will ever buy another box of crackers!
Comments on how things turned out:
Fresh birds are better than frozen. Despite my best intentions and watching the temp, at 1 hr 15 minutes, my birds were drier than I wanted them to be. But, very tasty!
The pan drippings could easily be transformed into a dipping sauce by adding some Dijon mustard or mayo (and maybe a bit of the spice mix to keep things spicy).
The simple salad really kicked and the sweet notes were a fabulous contrast to the spice on the Game Hens.
Let me know what you think in the comments!
When I first read “chipotle cocoa” I thought it sounded good. Like Mexican hot chocolate. I’ll have to look around for that seasoning. I might also try to make a chipotle cocoa drink. Hot chocolate with just a hint of chipotle.