Roasted Cornish Hens with Black-Olive Butter

Ingredients for Roasted Cornish Hens with Black-Olive Butter

• 2 spicchi d'aglio

• 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped shallot

• 1 stick (110g ) unsalted butter, softened

• 1/2 teaspoons black pepper

• 1 cucchiaino di sale

• 1 tablespoon coarsely chopped pitted Kalamata or other brine-cured black olives

• 1 tablespoon drained capers (in brine)

• 1 cucchiaio di olio d'oliva

• 4 (1 1/4- to 1 1/2-lb) Cornish hens (not frozen), halved lengthwise

• 60ml dry white wine

• a 17- by 13-inch heavy shallow metal baking pan

Put oven rack in upper third of oven and preheat oven to 260°C.

With motor of a food processor running, drop garlic cloves into processor to finely chop. Add shallot and pulse until finely chopped. Heat 1 tablespoon butter in a small skillet over moderate heat until foam subsides, then add garlic mixture (do not wash bowl of food processor), pepper, and 1/4 teaspoons salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic begins to turn golden, 3 to minutes. Return garlic mixture to food processor and add olives and capers. Pulse until olives and capers are finely chopped. Add 80ml butter and pulse until smooth.

Brush baking pan with oil (1 tablespoon ).

Working with 1 hen half at a time, slide your index finger under skin on each breast and around legs, including drumsticks, being careful not to tear skin. Place 1 tablespoon olive butter under skin on each half hen, then massage skin over thigh, drumstick, and breast to distribute butter.

Arrange hen halves, skin sides up, in baking pan. Melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in small skillet, then brush evenly over skin of hens. Sprinkle hens evenly with remaining 3/4 teaspoons salt.

Roast hens until golden and just cooked through, about 30 minutes.

Transfer hens to a platter, then straddle baking pan over 2 burners and add wine. Deglaze pan by simmering over low heat, stirring and scraping up brown bits with a wooden spoon, 2 minutes. Transfer pan sauce to a small serving bowl and skim fat with a spoon. Serve hens with sauce.

Avvertenza

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