Cornish Game Hens - 2 ways!

Yes, some people will not agree with me on this one, but I think Cornish game hens are so cute that I always want to buy them for dinner! I hesitated for a long time because Nick informed me he was not a fan - then I found out the only place he had had them was in a mess hall in Iraq - yeah, time to change his opinion. I told him he had to at least try them :) I think he approved. I made two, each a bit different, just so he had some variation. They were very juicy!

Pesto Style: Mmmmm..pesto sauce, makes everything better.

Ingredients

1 Cornish game hen

3 tb pesto sauce

1 tb Italian dressing

garlic clove, mashed

1/2 zucchini, sliced into 1/4 inch pieces

pinch of salt and pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and spray a baking dish with cooking spray. Rinse and pat the hen dry. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, inside and outside. Separate the skin from the meat and massage pesto sauce under the skin and all over the hen (as much as desired). Fill the cavity with the zucchini, dressing and the mashed garlic clove. Bake for approximately 30 minutes, until internal temperature is 160 degrees. Cover with aluminum foil for 10 minutes.

Italian Style

Ingredients

1 Cornish game hen

1/2 cup Italian dressing

1 tsp Italian seasoning

garlic clove, mashed

1/2 zucchini, sliced into 1/4 inch pieces

pinch of salt and pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and spray a baking dish with cooking spray. Rinse and pat the hen dry. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and the Italian seasoning, inside and outside. Separate the skin from the meat and massage the italian dressing under the skin and all over the hen (as much as desired). Fill the cavity with the zucchini, last 1 tb of dressing and the mashed garlic clove. Bake for approximately 30 minutes, until internal temperature is 160 degrees. Cover with aluminum foil for 10 minutes.