The Glory of Southern Cooking by James Villas

Author:James Villas
Language: eng, eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Published: 2012-07-26T16:00:00+00:00

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the bread, celery, onion, chestnuts, sage, thyme, salt and pepper, half the chicken broth, and 6 tablespoons of the butter and stir till the dressing is well blended.

Pack the cavity of each pheasant with as much dressing as it will hold, secure the cavities with small metal skewers, and brush each bird with the remaining 2 tablespoons melted butter. Spoon the remaining dressing into a baking dish and set aside.

Place the pheasants breast side down in a roasting pan, cover, and roast for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, moisten the dressing with just enough of the remaining broth to make a compact mixture.

Reduce the oven to 350°F, uncover the pheasants, place both the birds and pan of dressing in the oven, and cook till the pheasants are tender and the dressing is crusted, 30 to 40 minutes.

To serve, cut each pheasant in half lengthwise with a sharp knife and serve hot, with the additional dressing on the side.

Smothered Quail

Makes at least 6 servings

Southerners like to “smother” everything from chicken to rabbit to quail—meaning they either simply bake their meat slowly in a vessel with a tight-fitting lid or cook it in an iron skillet with a heavy weight on top. You really don’t have to tenderize quail, but marinating it briefly in a mixture of gin, oil, and seasonings does add a bit of mystery to its slightly gamey flavor. One nice thing about smothering quail in this manner, instead of frying, roasting, or grilling it, is that the likelihood of the tiny bird drying out is minimized.

12 dressed quail (fresh or frozen)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1⁄2 cup gin

1⁄2 cup vegetable oil

1 large onion, chopped

1 cup chopped celery leaves

1 teaspoon dried tarragon, crumbled

Tabasco sauce to taste

8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter

12 strips bacon

12 toast triangles

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