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Cornish Hens with Cornbread Stuffing

From Dinner for Two by Bev Bennett

Stir raisins and brandy together in a cup and let stand 1 hour. Sauté onions in 3 Tb of butter over low heat until just beginning to brown (10 minutes). Mix apples, parsley, cornbread crumbs, thyme, raisin-brandy mixture, and ¹/₂ tsp rind from the lemon in a medium bowl. Add the sautéed onions and butter, mix, and season with salt and pepper.

Rinse the hens inside and out, patting dry. Cut the lemon in half and rub the halves over the insides and outsides of the hens. Split stuffing evenly between the two hens. Place hens in a shallow roasting pan just large enough to hold them, putting two bacon strip halves across the top of each hen. Dot each bird with half the remaining 1 Tb butter and pour the wine into the dish.

Bake at 350°F for 60-75 minutes, basting every 15 minutes. Halfway through cooking time, rotate the hens in the pan so the outside portions move to the inside. Serve immediately!

Two notes about this recipe: First, it is scaled for two. It can be pushed to four, put the proportions aren't reliable when you triple or quadruple it. Second, it's time-consuming unless you habitually have thawed cornish hens, a cup of cornbread crumbs and golden raisins soaked in brandy in the house. Recommended for fancy meals rather than for everyday, but totally worth it!