A Southern Grace: adding insult to injury

April 7, 2010

adding insult to injury

Yum

Poor bird. Even those with the hardest of hearts has to admit that the disgrace suffered by this particular fowl is quite extreme.


First--how can I put this gently?--she left her body and this world and went on to a land made of birdseed and earthworms.


Then her lovely feathers were removed, among other things which we need not discuss. Finally, adding insult to injury, she got an apple unceremoniously stuffed up her rear end.

All that for me?

Isn't that demeaning? Geez.

Thanks, little lady--I appreciate your sacrifice.

Ravaged and Roasted Rosemary Hens
2 cornish game hens, completely thawed and dry
2 small apples
2 sprigs rosemary, finely chopped
salt and pepper
olive oil

Preheat oven to 375F. Stuff an apple and 1/2 sprig of rosemary into the empty cavity of each hen. Place on a roasting pan or dish sprayed with non stick spray, and rub oil over each hen. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and remaining chopped rosemary and rub into skin. Bake uncovered for 1 hour. During the last 15 minutes of cooking, bring the oven temperature up to 400 degrees to brown the skin. Just make sure that they are in the oven for an hour total or until juices run clear. Let rest 5-10 minutes before serving.

66 comments:

Trissa said...

In the end, I think it was all worth it! Looks delicious especially with the apple.

Rosa's Yummy Yums said...

LOL ;-P! She was worth it!

Cheers,

Rosa

Lyndas recipe box said...

They paid the ultimate sacrifice! :)
These birdies look really delish-love them with rosemary. I'll have to try the apple too.

Lisa-Marie said...

Roast chicken = AMAZING.

Have you tried quartering a lemon and an onion for chicken stuffing? I usually do that, them jam some butter under the chicken skin and squish it about, and then do some olive oil and rosemary on top. It is quite nice!

Valerie Harrison (bellini) said...

I will never look at apples the same again:D

Mimi said...

You have such a way with words! I love rosemary chicken.
Mimi

Marjie said...

I've tried lemon and orange in the chicken, but never apple! Looks great.

Barbara said...

Tell me you cut the apple in half? Game hens are not very big....

Your game hen + my rhubarb stuffing = match made in heaven!

Foodie with Little Thyme! said...

Poor sweet baby! But she does look yummy! At least her body was put to good use!

La Bella Cooks said...

LOL, never really thought of it in those very eloquent terms but if I did, I would never eat a thing. A very tasty sacrifice to say the least.

sweetlife said...

oh my ...well woth it..looks great..never tried using apple..


sweetlife

Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella said...

Interesting! I've never seen an apple stuffed chicken before. Does it fit easily or was it a small apple. Either way it's a cute story-but best not name her, that might get a bit strange to be eating a named chicken hehe :P

Pam said...

You always make me smile. The chicken sounds amazing... I love apples, lemons, or oranges stuffed in my birds, it gives them great flavor.

Leslie said...

lol.lol.lol..I sure would hate having an apple shoved up my ass too! lol

laura said...

This is awesome...I love your sense of humor! And personally, if I were a hen, and I knew I had it coming to me one way or another, I'd be quite honored at the thought of being made into something like this...I mean, consider how most chick a dees are treated post mortem - this here is grand treatment! Love the apple stuffing.

Josie said...

Hey, if you gotta go, ya might as well go out with an apple up your rear end... or something like that ;)

Looks tasty! I always shove citrus up there, but I bet an apple would be great too.

Faith said...

I love the name of this dish! It sounds really delicious with the combo of rosemary and apple!

~~louise~~ said...

I'm with Faith on this one. Rosemary and Apple sounds oh so intriguing...I've done this with oranges but apples...I can't wait to try it!

Thanks for sharing, Grace...

marla {family fresh cooking} said...

So sad but true...this hen does look might tasty, poor birdie. Rosemary and chicken is the perfect combo.

Krissy @ thefoodaddicts.com said...

haha... why do you blog like so? you are making us all guilty of eating chicken! chicken is oh so good though. great recipe.. i gotta use more rosemary in my cooking since i have a crazy rosemary bush growing in the garden.

Emily said...

Aww poor lil hen! I bet she was tasty, though. :D

Lucie said...

haha! such a funny post. Stuffing with an apple is a terrific idea!

Amy @ cookbookmaniac said...

Haha, poor miss chicken. We had best enjoy it to best we can if we have to kill it for our greed.

Unknown said...

I love you writing, more specifically the story you tell when talking about something you've cooked

Joanne said...

At least you made something utterly delicious out of the bird. So her death wasn't in vain.

lisa is cooking said...

I like the idea of the apple. I'm going to have to try that! I think she sacrificed herself nobly.

Jessica@Foodmayhem said...

I don't usually cook my cornish hens that long. I wonder if yours are bigger than the ones I usually get.

Cara said...

The apple and rosemary sound awesome. I hope I can find some hens to make the same sacrifice for me soon :)

kat said...

I bet that apple was tasty!

Mini Baker said...

Roast chicken is soooo scrumptious! I love the addition of the apples!
-Mini B.

Bob said...

Heh, awesome. Some indignities are worth it though! :D

Lindsey @ pickyeatings said...

I have never had cornish game hens, and I'm going to tell you why. They weird me out a little, because they are so tiny. I would probably actually love them. I do love a good roasted chicken!

Hungry Dog said...

Ha--you're a funny little lady yourself, grace. This looks delicious. Apple is brilliant (and makes sense, given your deep love of them)

Anonymous said...

:) A delicious bird with rosemary and apples!

Lori said...

I'll never forget the episode with Julia Childs rubbing butter all over a chicken, in her skin and out of her skin, saying this is how you honor the bird.

Only you could come up with such an original title for this recipe.

Laura said...

Hysterical--and yummy. I love the idea of an apple instead of citrus.

Albany Jane said...

Ha ha - poetry in savagery. Well done, Grace!

The Blonde Duck said...

I've never had a cornish game hen. How do they taste different than chicken?

Lisa said...

HIlarious! Poor little hen -- all that trouble was well worth it, right! Looks like a great recipe!

TKW said...

I'm giggling like a little kid at that last picture! Hilarious!

www.dhaleb.com said...

*snort*laugh*snort* is what it sounds like in front of my computer right now.

Can you imagine those poor turkeys getting sodomized every year?!?!

Mrs. L said...

I can't wait to see the look on my husbands face when I tell him we're having a ravaged and roasted bird for dinner :)

Robin said...

So simple yet so fancy. Nothing like a good roasted bird with rosemary!

Erica said...

LOL....But they are so good ;-)

Carolyn Jung said...

At least those hens came to a good end...uh, so to speak. ;)

Chef Fresco said...

Hahah poor chicky! Quite the sacrifice for a delicious meal :) Looks so tasty!

Sierra said...

The poor bird! I almost feel guilty laughing so hard. Sounds delicious though! :)

Sook said...

Oh what a great post! Looks so yummy though!

iamronel said...

like this dish..:)

Kristen Doyle said...

Love the post. So funny! And apple and rosemary-sound like a wonderful combination.

Shari said...

In spite of it all -- roasted with rosemary! Mmmmmm

Catherine said...

Gotta agree with Trissa! In the end it is worth it- a worthy cause! :)
Have a wonderful weekend dear!

kimberleyblue said...

Oooh...I've never stuffed a chicken's butt with apple, only lemon...that sounds great. And rosemary? Even better!

The chicken served a great purpose. :)

Sharon said...

Ha! You're hilarious. Poor little chick. Hope she was tasty ;)

Nick said...

You are still awesome. I haven't been here in way too long.

Lazaro Cooks said...

Saw your profile on another page. Glad I took the time to read your blog. It's informative and really well done. Look forward to following you here. Have a great day. Cheers!

Cheri said...

Oh dear.. that last photo reminds me a little too much of giving birth. But, thankfully my son was coming out not being stuffed in. That poor, poor, sweet little hen. :)

Unknown said...

Love the cornish game hen humor! Rosemary? a must. Apples? Something new to try.

pierre said...

there was no room for any other fruit?
Pierre de Paris

Sinful Southern Sweets said...

LOL! Poor thing! I bet it was wonderful though!!

Chef Aimee said...

Well, you are good to give her respect, but I would respect her more in my stomach. :) Delicious!

Kate at Serendipity said...

LOL, now I know why we say 'Grace' before meals--it's to make you stop reminding us about this stuff...

GRACE! That'll do!

Honesty in blogging rules require me to add that I'd eat this...it looks wonderful.

Deborah said...

I just have to say - I love your sense of humor!!

shaz said...

A land of birdseed and earthworms indeed! I think a worthy sacrifice was made...and you sure do love your apples don't you :)

Unknown said...

LMAO!!! I dunno, I just can't think of what to say about that "apple" picture. (me? speechless?)

sewa mobil said...

i can't imagine how it feels, it is certainly very delicous and tempting.
so yummy of course