Roasted Cornish Game Hens

Itty bitty teeny birdies....awwww....

There's nothing more cozy than spending a fall Sunday drinking some vino and roasting a bird. However, I hate the messiness of carving, serving and the mass amount of clean up afterwards. Besides the wishbone, there really isn't much to do with the rest of the bird. Game hens work out perfectly, they look like chicken, taste like chicken, cost the same as chicken and the clean up minimal.

2 Cornish Rock Game Hens (1-2lbs)
4 large carrots
2 whole garlic cloves crushed
1 small lemon quartered
1 small white onion quartered
Canola oil
1 stick of salted butter
1 large sprig of Sage
Salt and Pepper

Preheat oven to 400F.

Cut the carrots in half, length wise and line them up on the bottom of a large shallow baking dish or roasting pan. Rinse each bird inside and out with cold water and pat dry with paper towel. Rub the birds liberally with canola oil until they are well covered. Season inside and out with salt and pepper. Stuff the cavity of each bird with 1 clove of crushed garlic, 2 lemon wedges and 2 pieces of onion. Tie the legs of the bird together with baking twine OR you can use a toothpick to hold the legs together. Place the birds on the carrots, breast-side up. Tuck the wings underneath to avoid burning.

Melt the stick of butter in a small sauce pan over low heat. Add the sage leaves.

Place the birds in the oven for 1 hour and 20 minutes basting with the sage butter every ten minutes. Bird is done when the juices run clear from the thickest part of the bird.

Serve with the carrots and a side dish of my roasted potatoes!

Goodie Cookie Squares

A friend of mine was recently injured during a super intense hockey game...totally cool sports injury of course. Before a recent trip to his home to check on the status of his injury I had thrown together these cookie squares as a get well effort to cheer him up. I was originally going to make plain old pb cookies, but decided to add a little extra with the chocolate. I saved a couple of them for my husband and I...as we failed to keep from eating them, I was forced to baked another batch just for us. So in honor of Mr. Goodie....I give you Goodie Cookie Squares.

1 cup sugar
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 egg
pinch of salt
1 Hersey Chocolate Bar

Preheat oven to 350F. Cream the peanut butter and sugar until smooth. Add in the egg and salt and mix until a dough forms. Line an 8x8 square pan with parchment paper and evenly press the dough into the bottom of the pan and bake for 12-15 minutes until the edges are GoldenBrown :). Cool and cut into small squares. Break up the chocolate and melt in a double boiler or microwave. Dip the bottom of the squares in the melted chocolate and place onto a piece of parchment paper (reuse same piece). Place in refrigerator to harden.

GoldenBrown's Spicy Black Bean Chili

• 1 lb ground sirloin
• 1/2 of medium white onion - diced
• 2 large cloves of garlic - minced
• 2 large tomatoes - diced
• 1 can of black beans - drained and rinsed
• 1 15oz can of low sodium tomato sauce
• 1 cup of water
• 1/4 cup chili powder
• 1 tbls masa flour
• 1 tbls black pepper
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1 1/4 tsp kosher salt

In a large pot, brown the sirloin. Add the onions and garlic. Cook over medium low heat for about 7 minutes. Add all of the spices except for the salt and flour. Stir until the meat and onions are thickly coated. Add the tomato sauce and stir in the water. Add the tomatoes and beans. Simmer over low heat for about 15 minutes. Add the salt to taste. To thicken, add in the flour using a sifter to avoid lumps....OR you can add a tablespoon of the chili into a small bowl and add the flour. Mix until it is a thick paste, then stir into the large pot of chili. Simmer for another 20 minutes and continuously stir.

Serve while hot with some sharp cheddar and diced onions. Or whatever else you like!

GoldenBrown's Chicken Noodle Soup

6 boneless/skinless chicken thighs
6 cups Low-Sodium Chicken Broth
1/2 cup of a dry white wine
1 tbsp of chicken flavoring
1/2 of a medium white onion - chopped
2 small carrots - diced
2 celery roots - diced
4 celery stalks, including leaves - diced
1 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper
3 tbsp olive oil
Egg Noodles

Pat dry the chicken using a paper towel and cut them up into nice size pieces. Lightly season the pieces with salt and pepper. In a large covered pot over medium-high heat, add the olive oil. Add the chicken thighs and lightly sear on all sides for about 7 minutes total. Remove the chicken from the pot onto a separate dish to add back in later. Turn your heat down to medium and add in your onions, carrots, celery and celery root. You can add a little more olive oil if needed. DO NOT SALT AT THIS POINT. Once the vegetables are slightly cooked, add the garlic powder, pepper and chicken flavoring. The chicken flavoring will add additional sodium. Stir for a couple of minutes until the vegetables are coated in the garlic and flavoring. Add the wine. The wine should bring up all of the bits on the bottom of the pan. Cook around another 5-7 minutes. Add the chicken broth (NOTE - if the chicken broth is cold, heat it up first in a separate pan) and bring to a simmer. Add in the chicken and all of it's juices back into the pot. Bring to a simmer and taste if more salt is needed. Add in your egg noodles and cook for another 20 minutes.

Ravioli with Brown Butter Sage

WHOA! OK...now this was...I mean...THIS WAS SO GOOD! I did a bit of a semi-homemade thang here which you'll find out in a minute. But hey...that just means this is a totally quick meal that has bad-ass written...sorry rather poured all over it.

What you are looking at is quattro formaggio ravioli (4 cheese) with a homemade brown butter sage sauce, tomatoes and Crimini mushrooms. I'm estimating....15 minutes to make or less!!! What you'll need is:

1 package of cheese ravioli (Buitoni Quattro Formaggio...my semi-homemade part)

4 tbls of salted butter

6-7 fresh Sage leaves

1/4 cup cherry tomato halves

1/2 cup sliced Crimini mushrooms

Sprinkle of Parmesan cheese

Salt and Pepper

Boil the ravioli in salted water for about 5-7 minutes. At the same time add the butter to a pan over med-low heat for about 5 minutes until it is fully melted. Turn the heat up to about med-high and just as the butter starts to brown (don't worry it will turn brown) add in the remaining ingredients and tear the sage into the pan. Cook for about 2-3 minutes....add the ravioli from the boiling water and fold into the butter mixture until all of them a nicely covered in the sauce. Salt and pepper to taste and garnish with some cheese.

Roasted Tomatoes w/ Garlic and Oregano

• 4 cups St. Nick tomatoes


• 2 garlic cloves, sliced


• 2 tbls. fresh oregano leaves


• 3 tbls. balsamic vinegar


• 1/4 cup olive oil


• Salt, Pepper and garlic powder
  
  Preheat oven to 450F. Place the tomatoes and garlic in a baking dish large enough so they are not crowded. Drizzle oil over the tomatoes, then sprinkle with the salt, pepper and garlic powder and mix together using your hands to ensure all of the tomatoes are covered well in oil and seasonings. Add the oregano over the tomatoes and drizzle with the vinegar.
  
  *Note: the vinegar helps to cut through the natural sweetness of the tomatoes. If you are using a less sweet tomato, the vinegar is optional.
  
  Roast the tomatoes for 25-30 minutes. Once roasted, set aside to cool. Once cooled you can serve as a side dish, over pasta, or place in a blender and blend into a sauce to serve over pasta, meats, fish, etc. Choice is yours!

GoldenBrown's Chicken Coq au Vin

• 1-2 bone-in chicken breasts with skin
  
• Salt, pepper, garlic powder to taste
  
• 1 garlic clove, chopped
  
• 1 small onion, chopped
  
• 1 12 oz. bottle of dark beer (stout)
  
• 1 cup low sodium chicken broth
  
• 1 tsp. sugar
  
• 1 bay leaf
  
• 3 sprigs of fresh thyme
  
• 1 tbls. butter
  
• Chopped Italian parsley
  
  If most of you do not know...a coq au vin is basically chicken cooked in wine. However, I've seen many versions (seen not tasted) in which some call for beer. Since I had some stout in the fridge I decided to give it a try and the chicken turned out really tender and juicy.
  
  Pat the chicken dry using paper towel and season well with the salt, pepper and garlic powder. Brown on each side for about 5-7 minutes in a deep pot with a little bit of olive oil and butter. Remove the chicken and set side to finish cooking it later. Add in the garlic and onions to the pot and cook until translucent. Add in the rest of the ingredients and bring to a simmer. Add the chicken and its juices back into the pot and cover. Allow to cook for another 25 minutes over low heat. You can even place in the oven on 350F for the same amount of time.
  
  When finished I server over brown rice and garnish with parsley!
  
  Consider these optional ingredients as well:
  
  Pearl onions
  Potatoes
  Mushrooms
  Carrots
  
  Regardless this is an excellent meal and healthy too! Enjoy!