Spiced Game Hens

We're on to our second new recipe. So far, so good. We're already two whole weeks into the new year and I've kept my resolution. So today's new recipe was spiced game hens. Jacob was in the kitchen to help. Seriously- how cute is this kid? Right. Here are the ingredients:

1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 24-ounce Cornish game hens
1/2 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth

Problem #1- After 4 days in the refrigerator the damned things are still half-frozen. No time to marinate like the directions say, all time is spent thawing the suckers out.

And we're thawed. On to the directions:

1. In a small bowl combine lemon juice, olive oil, paprika, salt, coriander, turmeric, pepper, and garlic. Set mixture aside.
2. Using a long, heavy knife or kitchen shears, halve Cornish hens lengthwise. Cut through the breast bone of each hen, just off center; cut through the center of the backbone. If desired, remove backbone of each hen.
3. Place game hen halves in a large resealable plastic bag. Pour lemon mixture over hens. Seal bag; chill for 2 hours, turning bag once.
4. Remove hen halves from bag and place, cut side down, in a 3-quart rectangular baking dish. Pour lemon mixture from bag over top. Pour broth around hens in dish. Season chicken with additional salt and pepper.
5. Roast, covered, in a 375 degree F oven for 40 minutes. Uncover and continue roasting for 20 to 35 minutes more or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thigh of each hen registers 180 degrees F. (The thermometer should not touch bone.)

Problem #2- These puppies needed WAY more than 40 + 20 minutes of cooking. At the appropriate time, when the hens were SUPPOSED to be done, the pasta has been cooked, the breadsticks are browned, and the green beans have been perfectly steamed. Which means nothing now that the main course still needs an additional 20 minutes.

Problem #3- Adorable kid from the beginning of this post is now well into bedtime. Mark takes him up for a bath while I babysit the hens. Hens still cooking. Mark comes downstairs, covers up the breadsticks, pasta and green beans while I go upstairs to feed the now-cranky kid his last feeding of the night.

Problem #4- By the time the damned hens are finally done, the formerly cranky, now God-awful miserable kid is refusing to sleep.

I go upstairs. I come down. He cries. I have a couple bites of my dinner. I go back upstairs, put the pacifer in his mouth, come back down stairs. Still crying. This goes on 3-4 more times. Mark goes upstairs.

15 minutes pass.

I go to the bottom of the stairs.

"Mark?"

"What?"

"What are you doing?"

"I'm trying to put him to sleep?" (kid is screaming in the background)

"Well you have to come downstairs! You can't sit there all night and stroke his head until he falls asleep!"

"Says who?"

"Says Ferber!"

"Who's Ferber?"

"I don't know, but they call it the Ferber method. And I just spend the last 20 minutes practicing it and you're ruining it all by spoiling him right now!"

Needless to say, between the damned hens taking so long to cook, the baby being a total brat, and the accompaniments being cold, this was not a home run. In fact, the hens didn't have any spiced taste to them at all.

But then again I was supposed to marinate them for 2 hours. I don't know. Not convinced that would have made the difference. Please try and let me know if you have any more success.