Mushroom & Spinach Crepes

Mmm, crepes.  With mushrooms!  And spinach!  Oh, and chicken...  Feeling French and fancy free?  Try this on for size ;)

Ingredients:

• 4 T. butter
• 4 T. flour blend
• 2 c. milk (coconut/rice)
• 1 t. mustard
• Handful of cheese
• Salt/pepper, to taste
• Dash of nutmeg
• 1 can mushrooms, drained
• 2 handfuls spinach, chopped
• 1-2 handfuls of shredded rotiserrie chicken -or- 1 can chicken, drained

Directions:

     Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat.  Stir flour into browned butter and cook over low heat, stirring constantly for one minute.  Add milk a cup at a time.  Bring to a boil and whisk for 1 minute.  Add mustard and season to taste.  Add remaining ingredients and heat through.  Serve inside crepes.

Cajun Beans & Rice

This meal is hearty and tasty, and just overall satisfying.  Enjoy!

Adapted from My Food Storage Cookbook

Ingredients:

• 1 lb black beans
• 1/2 large onion, chopped -or- 4 T. dried onions
• 1/2 c. green bell pepper, chopped -or- 1/4 c. dehydrated
• 1 t. celery seeds
• 1.5 t. garlic powder
• 1 t. garlic salt
• 1/2 t. Worchestershire sauce
• 1/2 t. hot sauce
• 1 T. beef bouillon
• 1/4 c. bacon bits
• 4 chicken sausages, sliced
• 1 t. thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 1/2 t. creole seasoning
• 4 c. water

Directions:

     Sort and rinse beans.  Place in a large soup pot and cover with water.  Allow to soak overnight; or bring to a boil for 2 minutes on the stove, then cover and let sit for 1 hour.  Drain beans well.  Add prepared beans and remaining ingredients, including the 4 c. clean water.  Stir well and bake in oven at 275 for 3 hours, or in a crockpot on low for 8 hours.  Serve warm over a bowl of rice, and a side salad.

Orange Chicken/Beef (food storage version)

I would like to play with this recipe a bit more...  Not sure how I feel about the green chilies, and it could definitely use more of a sweeter orange flavor.  I'll keep you posted!

Adapted from My Food Storage Cookbook

Ingredients:

• 2 T. coconut oil
• 2 cans of chicken/beef, drained
• 1 can of mushrooms, drained
• 1 small can green chiles (opt)
• 1 c. dehydrated stir-fry veggies
• 3 T. soy sauce
• 3-4 T. brown sugar/molasses
• 2-4 T. frozen orange juice concentrate
• 1 T. apple cider vinegar
• 1 T. bouillon
• 2 T. dried orange peel
• 1/4 t. ginger
• 1/2 t. garlic
• 1/4 t. red pepper flakes (opt)
• 3/4 t. sesame seeds (opt)
• 1 1/2 c. rice/quinoa
• 4 c. water

Directions:

     Place all of the ingredients into a crockpot and cook on high for 4-6 hours, or until rice/quinoa is cooked.  Serve warm with a side salad.

BBQ Chicken Pizza

This is one of my faves; so easy and such a hit with just about anyone!  Makes for a great lunch option, too.  And nowadays you can even find great gluten free flour tortillas, resulting in a simple, delicious, and basically perfect thin crust pizza...  Which is no easy feat when it comes to gluten free ;)

Ingredients:

• flour tortillas (about 1-2 per person)
• favorite BBQ sauce
• couple handfuls of shredded rotisserie chicken -or- 1 can chicken, drained
• 1 can diced pineapple, drained
• 1/4 small red onion, thinly sliced
• fresh cilantro, minced
• shredded cheese

Directions:

     Toast tortillas in preheated oven.  Spread on a layer of BBQ sauce over toasted tortillas, then top with desired amounts of chicken, pineapple, onion, cilantro, and cheese.  Place pizzas back into oven and allow cheese to melt.  Serve warm with a side salad.

Chicken Cacciatore

This is simple, and good!  It's simply good ;)

Adapted from My Food Storage Cookbook

Ingredients:

• 5 chicken thighs -or- 1 can of chicken, drained
• 1 green bell pepper, sliced -or- 1/2 c. dried, rehydrated
• 1 can mushrooms, drained
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 2 T. coconut oil
• 2 T. dried onions
• 1-2 T. brown sugar
• 1 T. balsamic vinegar
• 1 t. chicken bouillon
• 1 t. garlic powder
• 1 t. basil
• 1 t. salt
• 1/4 t. pepper
• 1/4 t. crushed red pepper
• 1/4 c. parmesan cheese -or- prepared polenta

Directions:

    Place all ingredients, except for parmesan/polenta, in a crockpot and cook on low for 4-6 hours.  Shred chicken and stir in parmesan/polenta.  Serve over herbed polenta.

Thanksgiving Casserole

More often than not, I make this with my Thanksgiving leftovers, and rarely have an exact measurement of ingredients...  But for our food storage purposes, I've figured out a good ingredient-to-ingredient ratio which allows us the option of having this for dinner at any time of the year!  This also makes a great freezer meal, which means this is probably one of the easiest throw together and store/eat meals ever :)

Ingredients:

     ·  1 individual package of mashed potatoes, prepared

     ·  1 package/box of stuffing, prepared

     ·  prepared chicken gravy

     ·  shredded cheese, to taste (opt)

 Directions:

     You can either mix all the ingredients together in a casserole dish, or you can layer ingredients according to preference.  Warm in preheated oven until bubbling.  Top with cheese, if desired and broil until melted.  Serve with a side salad.

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

I honestly lovvve my original enchilada recipe, but this is a relatively low fuss version that works quiet well and is equally tasty.  I either use leftover shredded Southwest chicken as the filling (because it freezes well) or cook it in the crockpot the day of.  You can also use tortilla chips in place of tortillas for a truly simple casserole, which consequently is a great way to use up any stale chips!

Ingredients:

• 10-20 corn tortillas (depending on size of casserole dish)
• prepared Southwest chicken (for filling)
• 1-2 c. canned enchilada sauce
• cheese

Directions:

     Fry corn tortillas in coconut oil, if desired.  Add a fine layer of enchilada sauce to a casserole dish (or large oven safe skillet) before layering tortillas and then filling.  Add a little bit of enchilada sauce with each layer of tortillas/filling, ending with a final layer of tortillas, sauce and desired amount of shredded cheese.  Bake until bubbling and cheese is melted; broil for a few minutes to get a nice cheesy crust.  Serve warm with a side salad.

Chicken and Vegetable Casserole

This is such a comfort food!  Reminds me of when I was a kid...  Relatively easy to prepare, fills up hungry tummies, and pleases palates of all ages.  Triple win :)

Ingredients:

• 4 T. butter
• 4 T. flour (equal parts sorghum and rice flour)
• 1 c. milk (rice milk works great)
• 1 c. chicken broth
• 1 T. apple cider vinegar
• 1 lb chicken, cubed and cooked -or- 2 cans of chicken, drained
• 2 c. rice, prepared in 4 c. chicken broth
• 1 lb. broccoli or mixed vegetables (Normandy) -or- 1 c. dried veggies, redhydrated in 2 c. broth
• 1 can mushrooms, drained
• 1-2 T. dried onions, rehydrated
• 1 T. sage
• 1 t. paprika
• salt/pepper, to taste
• dash of nutmeg
• shredded cheese

Directions:

     Make a roux with butter and flour; combine milk, broth and vinegar and add to roux a cup at a time.  Whisk well and bring to a simmer.  Add remaining ingredients and place in a casserole dish.  Top with desired amount of cheese and bake at 350 until bubbly and cheese is melted.  Broil for a few minutes until cheese begins to brown.  Serve warm with a side salad.

Teriyaki Chicken II (food storage version)

I think I might prefer this version to the other...  And this sauce makes for a great marinade!  You can also make this dish in the oven, or on the stove-top and just cook the rice separately.  There's a lot of ways to modify this recipe (see notes below), and I end up making it all the time with chicken thighs and fresh vegetables.  But for now I'll share the more food storage friendly version :)

Ingredients:

• 2-4 T. coconut/avocado oil (2 T. for crock, 4 T. for marinade)
• 1/4 c. low sodium soy sauce
• 2 T. ketchup
• 1 T. apple cider vinegar
• 5 t. brown sugar
• 1/4 t. pepper
• 1/4 t. ginger
• 1/2 t. sesame seeds
• 2 cloves of garlic -or- 2 t. garlic powder
• 2 cans of chicken, with liquid
• 3 c. chicken broth*
• 1 c. rice
• 1 c. dried veggies
• 1 can mushrooms, drained

Directions:

     Combine ingredients in slow cooker.  Cook on high for 2 hours, then reduce heat to low and cook for another 2-3 hours or until rice is tender.

Notes: If you choose to use fresh/frozen vegetables (1 lb) in place of dried vegetables, decrease broth to 1 cup.  You can use 6-8 chicken thighs in place of canned chicken, but you should probably reduce the rice to 3/4 c. unless your chicken is frozen.  I guess it depends on how saucey you want your meal to be!  You can also omit the rice altogether and then thicken the sauce with cornstarch in a separate saucepan.  However you choose to prepare it, enjoy!  *B

Chicken Parmesan (food storage version)

Similar to the simple chicken patties, but with just a few changes and voila!  This version of chicken parmesan is fast and easy, but still delicious.

Ingredients:

• 2 cans of chicken, drained
• 2 large eggs
• 4 T. milk
• 1 T. dried onion
• 2 slices of bread, finely crumbled
• 1/4 c. parmesan cheese
• 1/4 c. ground flax
• 1/2 t. Italian seasoning
• salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste
• 4 T. coconut oil
• Spaghetti sauce
• mozzarella cheese
• 12 oz. spaghetti

Directions:

     In a small bowl, add 1 T. water to dried onion to rehydrate; set aside.  Beat egg and milk in large mixing bowl.  Add rehydrated onion, bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, flax and seasoning; stir well until combined.  Form mixture into 6-8 patties, according to desired size.  Melt 1-2 T. oil in large skillet over medium heat.  Add 3-4 patties to hot pan and fry for 4 minutes on each side.  Add extra oil as needed to pan and cook remaining patties.

     Transfer finished patties to lined cookie sheet.  Top each pattie with a spoonful of spaghetti sauce and mozzarella cheese.  Bake at 350 until cheese is melted.  While chicken bakes, prepare pasta.  Once cooked, drained and return to pot.  Add 1 c. spaghettie sauce to pasta and stir well.  Serve chicken patties on a bed of pasta and top with more sauce as desired.  Sprinkle with additional Parmesan cheese.

Bayou Chicken Pasta

This isn't your typical pasta dish...  At least not the kind of pasta I'm used to!  But it is really, really tasty.  And pretty gosh dang simple, too.  With a lot of flavor and just the right amount of heat, it's sure to satisfy your taste buds and grumbling tummy.

Adapted from My Food Storage Cookbook

Ingredients:

• 1 - 2 T. coconut oil
• 1/4 large onion, chopped -or- 2 T. dried onion, rehdyrated
• 2 T. canned green chiles
• 1 t. garlic, minced
• 1 can chicken, drained
• 1 T. creole seasoning
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/4 t. garlic powder
• 1 t. brown sugar
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1 13.5 oz. can coconut milk
• 1 c. water
• 2 t. chicken bouillon
• 1/2 c. parmesan cheese (add more as desired)
• 1 handful chopped spinach -or- 1 can spinach, drained
• 2 c. penne or bowtie pasta

Directions:

   Melt oil in large skillet over medium heat.  Saute onion, garlic and green chiles.  Add chicken and spices; stir in tomatoes.  Add coconut milk, water and bouillon.  Stir in pasta and spinach and simmer until pasta is al dente, stirring continually so noodles cook evenly.  Top with cheese and stir until well mixed and sauce thickens.

Fajita Bowls

I love a good fajita!  Especially in warm tortillas, mmm.  However, sometimes a bowl of rice really hits the spot...  I prefer to cook my rice in broth for extra flavor.  As for all the veggies, fresh is always best.  But if you want something fast, canned or frozen/dehydrated vegetables work great in this recipe.

Ingredients:

     • 2 T. olive/coconut oil

     • 1 can of chicken/beef (do NOT drain)

     • 1 can sliced mushrooms, drained

     • 1 small package of frozen peppers & onion mix*

     • 1 tablespoon cornstarch

     • 1/2 - 2 teaspoons chili powder (depending on how potent your chili powder is and how spicy you like it)

     • 1 teaspoon brown sugar

     • 1/2 teaspoon salt

     • 1 teaspoon paprika

     • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder

     • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

     • 1/4 teaspoon cumin

Directions:

     Combine cornstarch and spices in a bowl and set aside.  Heat oil in a medium-large skillet.  Cook vegetables before adding spices; toss to coat.  Add chicken/beef with liquid and stir to combine.  Serve warm over prepared rice with salsa, cheese, and sour cream (or plain yogurt).

Note: Peppers and onions particularly dry well, straight from bag to dehydrator!  No blanching or prep work needed.  And then when you're ready for dinner, rehydrate them in water/broth and cook up as you normally would.  Make sure to give yourself enough water (about 2 c. water for every 1 c. dried veggies) and enough time (up to two hours).

Coq Sans Vin (food storage version)

So, I have a pretty cool story behind this recipe.  Well, I think it's cool...  Anyway, I was fretting all week about converting one of my all time favorite meals (Coq Sans Vin) into something that would work for food storage and I just kept drawing blanks on ideas.  I mean, how can you turn a fabulous French meal into something using canned food???  I was almost embarrassed for even considering it!

But then this morning, I woke up with a dream fresh in my mind and suddenly I had an idea: make chicken patties with canned chicken.  Talk about answered prayers, because it totally worked!  Now, mind you, this version doesn't even hold a candle to the original.  But, BUT, it will suffice in times of emergency.  And for that reason I am calling it a miraculous success ;)

Ingredients:

     • prepared chicken patties

     • ¼ c. bacon bits

     • 1 T. flour (GF fine)

     • 2 c. chicken broth

     • 1 T. apple cider vinegar

     • 1 T. dried onions

     • 1/4 t. garlic & herb

     • 1/2 t. salt

     • 1/2 t. dried sage

     • 1 bay leaf

     • 1 large can whole carrots, drained*

     • 1 can mushrooms, drained 

Directions:

     Once chicken patties are transferred to warm oven, add bacon to the hot skillet used for preparing the patties.  Cook until crisp.  Add flour and stir, cooking for 1 minute.  Add vinegar and chicken broth a cup at a time, whisking until a thin gravy forms.  Add remaining ingredients and stir; turn heat to low and bring to a simmer.  Remove from heat and serve over prepared mashed potatoes and chicken patties.  Goes great with sweet & savory green beans!

Note: I'm pretty sure dehydrated carrots would be far superior in this than canned.  So that's my next experiment: cook with more dehydrated food.  And I'm pretty dang excited about the prospect of dehydrating frozen food!  Makes me giddy just thinking about it.  *B

Simple Chicken Patties

Not a whole lot to this, really...  Would make a great burger, goes well with a slew of sauces and sides, and pretty dang versatile if you consider all the potential seasoning options.  And it easily converts to a dairy/gluten free friendly meal.  Also, yay food storage!

Ingredients:

• 2 cans of chicken, drained
• 2 large eggs
• 4 T. milk
• 1 T. dried onion
• 2 c. bread crumbs (3 slices of bread)
• salt & pepper, to taste
• thyme, to taste
• 4 T. coconut oil

Directions:

     In small bowl, add 1 T. water to dried onion to rehydrate; set aside.  Beat egg and milk in large mixing bowl.  Add rehydrated onion and remaining ingredients, except oil, and stir well until combined.  Form mixture into 6-8 patties, according to desired size.  Melt 1-2 T. oil in large skillet over medium heat.  Add 3-4 patties to hot pan and fry for 4 minutes on each side.  Transfer to oven to keep warm.  Add extra oil as needed to pan and cook remaining patties.  Serve warm.

Basic Chicken Gravy

I make this gravy allllll the time.  It's beyond simple and still yum.  The kids always lick their plates and ask for seconds.  Win!  Feel free to make with fresh/frozen veggies and rotisserie chicken for a win-win meal that's sure to please :)

Ingredients:

     • 4 T. butter

     • 4 T. flour (equal parts brown rice, sorghum and tapioca)

     • 2 c. chicken broth

     • 1 c. milk (DF works well)

     • salt/pepper, to taste

     • thyme/sage, to taste

     • 1 can chicken, drained

     • 1 can mixed vegetables, drained

Directions:

     Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat.  Stir flour into browned butter and cook over low heat, stirring constantly for one minute.  Add broth 1 cup at a time.  Bring to a boil and whisk for 1 minute.  Season to taste. Add chicken and vegetables and heat through.  Serve over biscuits/mashed potatoes.

Hawaiian Haystacks

Most people I know love haystacks.  But everyone has their own opinion on what makes a good stack.  I grew up having completely different toppings from the hub, and if you do a search on the interwebs, you'll quickly see that everyone makes them their own special way.  Which is one of the reasons I love them!  Totally customizable, and very kid friendly.  And this, my friends, is how we stack.

Ingredients:

• 4 T. butter/spread
• 4 T. flour (2 T. brown rice flour + 2 T. tapioca/potato flour)
• 2 c. chicken/vegetable broth
• 2 T. soy sauce
• 1/4 t. garlic powder
• 1/4 t. ginger
• 2 cans chicken, drained
• prepared rice
• celery, finely chopped
• green onions, thinkly sliced
• red bell pepper, finely chopped
• chow mein noodles
• pineapple chunks
• sliced almonds
• coconut

Directions:

1. In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.  As butter begins to brown, add flour and stir.  Cook for one minute, stirring constantly.
2. Slowly whisk in chicken broth, 1 c. at a time.  Allow to thicken before adding more broth and whisk well.  Simmer until desired consistency.
3. Add in chicken and heat through.  Remove from heat.
4. Serve gravy over prepared rice.  Top with desired toppings and dig in!

As a little side note, this makes for a great food storage meal.  But if you'd rather use cooked chicken (or none at all), feel free.  I know a lot of people use canned chicken soup as their gravy base, and truth be told, so did I.  That's how my mom made it, and then we would add the soy sauce individually.  I stopped buying canned soup a while ago, so while making my own gravy from scratch I decided to add the soy sauce to it directly rather than as its own topping.  Between that and the added garlic and ginger, this gravy really has a great flavor that blends perfectly with the listed toppings.  Reminds me of the islands ;)

But if you grew up eating haystacks with olives, or tomatoes, then you might want to omit the soy sauce and ginger.  Feel free to experiment and make it your own...  Because that's what makes haystacks so great!  *B

Crockpot Teriyaki

Not much to say here, except that this recipe is easy peasy (as my son would say) and tasty, too!  Complete with no complaints from the kids, only compliments ;)

Adapted from Lake Lure Cottage Kitchen

Ingredients:

• 2 T. coconut oil
• 8 chicken thighs
• 1/2  c. + 2 T. brown sugar
• 3/4 c. low-sodium soy sauce
• 6 T. apple cider vinegar
• 3/4 t. ground ginger
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/4 t. pepper
• handful of baby carrots, quartered
• handful of fresh snap peas, ends trimmed
• 1 can of sliced mushrooms, drained
• 1 handful of cabbage/lettuce, chopped
• 4 1/2 t. cornstarch
• 4 1/2 t. cold water

Directions:

1. Preheat crockpot on high.  Add coconut oil to crockpot and let it melt.
2. Combine sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, ginger, garlic and pepper until well combined.
3. Place chicken in crockpot.  Pour soy sauce mixture over chicken.  Place vegetables on top.  Cover and cook on high for 2 hours, or until simmering.
4. Reduce heat to low and cook for 1-2 hours longer.
5. Remove chicken and veggies from crockpot and set aside.  Combine cornstarch and water in small bowl and set aside.
6. Pour sauce contents from crockpot into a saucepan and bring to boil.  Add cornstarch mixture and stir until thickened.
7. Serve with brown rice.  Enjoy!

Feel free to omit the veggies from the crock and cook up your own assortment as a side dish.  Leftover chicken would make for a great Asian salad, or even lettuce wraps!  *B

Balsamic Chicken w/ Quinoa

I love balsamic vinegar!  I don't know if it's due to my Italian heritage or not, but I could practically drink the stuff.  My husband is the complete opposite.  He doesn't care for tomatoes, or anything too acidic.  Makes me wonder about my pH levels...  Anyway, we both love this dish.  It does a great job of uniting all taste-buds ;)

Adapted from Dishing with Leslie

Ingredients:

• 2 T. oil (olive/coconut)
• 6-8 chicken thighs/breasts
• 1 T. brown sugar
• 1 T. Italian seasoning
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/4 t. pepper
• 2 bay leaves
• 4 garlic cloves, minced OR 1/2 t. garlic powder
• 1/2 onion, sliced
• 2 handfuls of spinach, chopped
• 1 can of diced tomatoes
• 1/3 c. balsamic vinegar
• 2 t. chicken bouillon
• 1 c. quinoa
• 2 c. chicken broth

Directions:

1. Add oil to crock pot and place chicken on top.  Combine spices and sprinkle over chicken.
2. Top chicken with minced garlic, sliced onion, chopped spinach and can of tomatoes.
3. Combine chicken bouillon w/ balsamic vinegar, and pour on top.
4. Cover and cook on high for 3.5 hours.  Reduce heat to low and cook for another 30 minutes.
5. While chicken cooks, prepare quinoa:  Bring chicken broth and quinoa to a boil in a medium saucepan; reduce heat and simmer until liquid is absorbed and quinoa is fluffy.
6. Serve chicken over prepared quinoa.  Enjoy!

This makes a lot of sauce, and the quinoa does a great job of soaking it up.  I like to save any remaining sauce and freeze it to use as a thin pasta sauce later.  I'm sure it would be an awesome addition to soup, too (think minestrone).   Or if you're like me, you could always just drink it.  *B

Coq Sans Vin

When I was newly married I would happily go through my Betty Crocker cookbook (a wedding gift), select a recipe and experiment on my new husband.  This dish was one of the first I tried in our itty bitty kitchen, and I've been cooking it ever since.  Whenever we had people over for dinner, we served this.  Whenever I wanted to impress the in-laws, I'd make this.  I've tweaked it a bit each time, getting closer and closer to perfection...  And I am happy to report that it is has indeed been perfected :)

Adapted from Betty Crocker

Ingredients:

• 6-8 chicken thighs, rinsed and dried
• 1 c. flour (make it GF by using equal parts sorghum, tapioca and brown rice flour)
• 2 t. salt
• 1/2 t. pepper
• 1/2 onion, chopped/sliced
• 6 carrots, scrubbed & cut into fourths (baby carrots work great, too)
• 4 - 8 oz. mushrooms, sliced
• 8 slices of bacon OR 2 chicken sausage links, diced
• 2 c. chicken broth
• 2 T. apple cider vinegar
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/2 t. dried thyme
• 1/2 t. dried parsley (opt)
• 1 bay leaf (opt)

Directions:

1. Combine flour, 2 t. salt and 1/2 t. pepper into a large ziplock bag.  Add chicken and coat evenly in flour mixture.  Remove chicken and set aside.  And throw that nasty bag away!
2. Heat a large cast iron pot over medium heat.  Cook bacon/sausage until done.  Remove from pot and set aside.
3. Allow pot to get nice and hot and add the dredged chicken in single layers.  Cook for two minutes per side, or until brown.  Remove chicken from pot and set aside.
4. Add onions, carrots and mushrooms to pot.  Cook for one minute, add garlic and cook for a minute longer.
5. Add chicken broth, apple cider vinegar, 1/2 t. salt and thyme.  Stir well.
6. Place chicken on top and sprinkle with bacon.  Remove from heat.  Cover pot and place in a 275 degree oven.
7. For every pound of chicken, cook for 1 - 1.5 hours.  So if you have 3 pounds of chicken, cook for 3 - 4.5 hours.
8. Remove from oven and serve with mashed potatoes.  You can use the liquid straight from the pot, or you can make a killer gravy with it.
9. Another option is to let it sit overnight in the fridge and serve it the next day.  This allows the fat to raise to the service and solidify, making it easier to remove before reheating.  That is, if you want to...

The original recipe is called "Coq Au Vin" which is French for "chicken with wine".  As you may have noticed, my recipe does not use wine.  That's where the extra cup of chicken broth, plus the apple cider vinegar, comes from.  That's my secret wine substitute.  And I will have you know that both of my parents speak French, one lived in Quebec while the other lived in France, and both think this dish is awesome!  So there.  *B

Apricot-Sage Glazed Game Hens

I must admit, I'm extremely proud of this recipe!  And our dinner guests seemed pretty pleased, seeing as even the ladies ate more than half of their own bird!  Keep in mind this was our third course...  So I'd say it was a success!  Who says a vegetarian can't come up with an awesome meat dish ;)

Ingredients: 

• 2 game hens
• 4 c. water
• 2 T. salt
• 2 T. sugar

• 2 t. salt (1/2 t)
• 1/2 t. cayenne (1/8)

• 1/2 apple, chopped
• 1/4 onion, chopped
• 1/4 orange, chopped
• 1/4 t. garlic
• 2 sage leaves
• 2 sprigs of thyme

• 2/3 c. chicken broth
• 1 T. apple cider vinegar
• 3 T. apricot preserves
• 1 T. brown sugar
• 2 T. onion
• 1/2 t. garlic
• 2 T. chopped sage
• 3 sprigs of thyme
• dash nutmeg

Directions: 

1. Combine water with sugar and salt and brine game hens for 2-4 hours, in fridge.  Remove birds from brine and rinse with water.  Dry with paper towel.
2. Brush insides of birds with 1/3 salt and cayenne mixture.  Sprinkle w/ remaining spice on outside, and rub in.
3. Stuff each hen with equal parts apples, onions, garlic, orange, sage and thyme.  Allow to air dry in fridge, uncovered for 30-60 minutes.
4. While birds dry, prepare the glaze: combine chicken broth with apple cider vinegar, apricot preserves, brown sugar, onions, sage, thyme and nutmeg in food blender and process until smooth.  Add to saucepan and simmer over medium heat until thickened, stirring frequently.
5. Preheat oven to 350.  Place dried birds in roasting pan and pour glaze over birds.  Bake, covered at 350 for 15 minutes.  Remove cover and bake for another 15 minutes.
6. Roast hens for 30 minutes more, or until internal temp reaches 165, glazing every 10 minutes.  Remove from oven and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes, covered.

I've made these three times now, with the commitment to make them once a month as a special Sunday dinner.  Twice, my father raved about them, even declaring them to be better than my mother's (sorry, mom).  And when he found out I made it a third time without him, he drooled and wished for some leftovers.  *B