For 2 people in 1 hr 20 mins – mostly roasting time, which
leaves room for plenty of wine appreciation time J
So, it’s currently four degrees centigrade. It’s going to
get down to zero tonight. Later this week, it should get to minus one. It’s
also April.
Constant talk about the weather is one of those quaint stereotypes
I thought was hysterical in my parents’ British friends while I was growing up.
And yet, seven years in a city where you need to be armed for the day with an
umbrella and sunglasses and I find myself talking about the weather.
Constantly.
Will or won’t the sun shine? How has the snow turned to rain
and then back into snow in the space of 15 minutes? Where did this biting wind
come from?
All fascinating stuff, and it makes me dream of soups, thick
stews, big bowls of pasta and filling, warming roasts.
If you fancy a mid-week roast, this one is easy, delicious
and takes just under an hour and a half to make, which is not too bad really.
Poussins are a great roast as they cook quite quickly and are very tender and moist. If you buy them spatchcocked they roast in 20 minutes flat. They also look great on a table as everyone has their own individual bird.
Ingredients
Birds
2 poussin
½ lemon
2 cloves garlic
1 sprig rosemary
Sauce – note this is actually enough to serve more like 6-8
people
½ bottle red wine
195g cranberry sauce
8 juniper berries
1 big sprig rosemary
5 black pepper corns
Parsnips
2 parsnips
A generous slice of butter
A few tbsps cream
1 tbsp grated fresh horseradish
Salt and pepper
I served this with steamed kale on the side for some greenery.
Preheat the oven to 180C.
Put all the ingredients for the sauce into a small saucepan
and bring to a boil. Simmer until it is reduced by 1/3 or substantially
thickened.
Cut the lemon into quarters, garlic cloves in half and
rosemary spring in half. Stuff the birds with an equal amount of each and put
on to roast.
Peel and cut the parsnips into cubes. Put on to boil until
soft. Mash with a generous slice of butter, a couple tablespoons of cream or to
taste, the horseradish and salt and pepper to taste.
Plate up, serving the sauce in a gravy boat on the side for
people to help themselves.
