Cornish Game Hens with Garlic and Rosemary

Oh my goodness!! We had this for dinner last night, whith a roaster chicken instead of hens. This was unbelievable! I put some minced garlic in the cavity along with the lemons and rosemary. I put a mixture of 1/4c, butter, 1/2 tsp. minced garlic, juice from 1 quarter of the lemon and some dried crushed rosemary(I mashed this all together) and put in under the breast skin. It mad the breast meat super flavorful and tender. I used minced garlic instead of cloves, and it burnt during the roasting part(425) so if you ar doing the minced garlic, you might want to add part of the wine and broth mixture so that it wont burn. The gravy was delicious, I did however add a little cornstarch to thicken it up. Served this with Gourmet Sweet Potato Cassarole(on this site), Basic Yankee Bread Stuffing(on this site), Mashed Potatoes, Green beans, Mushrooms and Cranberries. I also did as someone suggested to put mushrooms into the juices the last 20 minutes of cooking. What a meal!

We loved the hens! I halved the recipe and roasted just 2. I used a roaster pan without the lid and found the time specified in the recipe was just right. Like others suggested, I added chicken broth to the garlic in the pan so the garlic wouldn't burn and that worked well. I also doubled the gravy as others suggested and that was a good idea. Great recipe - it's a keeper!

This is the best cornish game hen recipe I have ever found. It is absolutley wonderful. Since there are only two in my house, I made two games hens, but left the wine and broth the same (basically the sauce I kept the same) and it turned out perfectly. If I used four hens, I would double the sauce because when I boiled the sauce down it was perfect for two hens. ABSOLUTLEY WONDERFUL. Thank you for a new favorite, and very moist, game hen recipe...Shannon

Was actually very easy, and tasted great, BUT....I think you need to cook them a bit longer. (It could be my oven) Break the thigh open and check for doneness. Even though my thermometer read 181, it was still very pink down in the thigh area. Instead of a roasting rack, I cubed sweet potato and put the hens on top of them to roast. Mmmmmmmm! All of the juices from the hens, oil and lemons drizzled down on them and it was Scrumtious!

I searched for a long time for a Cornish Hen recipes since I had never made them before, and did I find a winner! It was so easy, flavorful, and juicy! I did make a few modifications, I used 2 hens since it's just my husband and I, In the cavity of each bird I put a quarter lemon, 2 cloves of garlic and 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary. I read the recipe wrong and actually rubbed 1 tbsp of olive oil on each hen, but still came out good. I then put 1 tbsp butter under the skin on each breast, along with 2 sprigs of the fresh rosemary. I sprinkled some poultry seasoning on each hen along with a lemon slice on the breast and then placed them in my roasting pan on top of cubed yukon gold potatoes. After roasting I took 2/3 c. of cheap pinot grigio, 2/3 c. chicken broth, and about 5 cloves of minced garlic and used that to pour over the hens and baste with. Holy cats was this great! My whole house smelt amazing, and the potatoes were the best I'd ever had! I loved how everything cooked all at once and all I had to do was throw together a salad. My husband raved about this recipe, and picked his hen clean. We loved it so much I'm going to be adapting this recipe to a roasting chicken tonight for dinner. Hope it comes out just as good. Thanks you for sharing a great recipe!

we loved this recipe. I used a whole 4 lb chicken instead of the cornish hens and it turned out great. I did not use the lemons as suggested (did't have them) so I stuffed the bird with a whole yellow onion quartered and dried rosemary *again did not have fresh). I also doubled the white wine/chicken stock mixture. my only suggestion would be to put a little chicken stock in the pan with the cloves of galic at the start so the garlic will not burn.

I make this often. I always add extra rosemary and lemons for extra flavor. We like to use the garlic after to spread on bread!!

These were tasty! Very simple too- except I was short on time so I cut down on the garlic and didn't reduce the sauce. I also used dried rosemary and omitted the wine, just using extra broth and a little bit of apple juice. These were great for Christmas dinner.

Excellent recipe that I have made at least 6 times and always comes out perfect. Only two additional recommendations to the recipe is place a little softened butter with minced garlic on top of hen between skin and brest and add a little broth to pan before placing in oven to keep garlic from burning. Add what ever flavors your family prefers to cavity (onion slices, lemon wedges, garlic, etc.).

This recipe was pretty good. I halved the garlic called for and it was more than enough. I added one clove in the cavity as well. I used more lemon than called for, it had a wonderful lemon flavor. The only problem I had was cooking time. It took 1 1/2 hours to cook before it browned at all. It was not overcooked though, it was very moist and tender. This is a good basic recipe, I will probably vary it in the future, and prepare my sides later now that I know to lengthen the cooking time. Great recipe for someone who has never tried cornish hens before!

This is probably the best dish I've ever made, the flavor is WONDERFUL!! I made it last night with garlic mashed potatoes and sweet greenbean bundles. Absolutely to die for! Thank you so much for the recipe!

Great! I love garlic, so I added more garlic than the recipe calls for. When making the gravy at the end, I added all the cooked garlic and mashed it in with the sauce. It gave it a much more garlicky taste. I didn't cut it in half like suggested, but served it whole, pouring the sauce over the hens as my husband and I ate. Our only problem was the mess, but otherwise, good recipe.

This was my first time making any kind of whole poultry (I know!) and the recipe couldn't have been easier. I definitely added some stock to the pan right away like other suggested and I'm glad I did - the garlic definitely would have burned. I almost tripled the sauce for two hens and had a little bit of sauce left over. Next time I'll definitely season the inside of the bird before stuffing it with lemon and rosemary.

This was A-mazing! I used more salt & pepper than asked and the skin came out very crisp and tasty. I also added red potatoes and carrots to the pan and put more rosemary in the pan to add flavor to the veggies and drippings. I almost trippled the liquid because I didn't want the garlic and veggies to burn and it was necessary in order to make the sauce. The sauce was just delectable! You don't have to add flour to the sauce if you follow the directions. I used a potato smasher to mash the garlic and continuously stirred the boiling sauce until it thickened. I can't wait to use this on a whole chicken or turkey like others have done.

I had never made cornish hens, but decided to venture out & make them for Valentines Dinner earlier this week. WOW! My husband & I LOVED this recipe! I only made 2 hens, but followed all measurements of the original recipe. I made a few additional tweaks as follows: 1. I brined the hens for 2 hours prior to baking. I soaked them in chicken broth, water, red wine vinegar, white rice vinegar, spoonful of brown sugar, little honey [I just eye-balled all of these ... can't really go wrong!] 2. Sprayed bottom of pan with cooking spray so garlic cloves wouldn't burn 3. Put 4-5 garlic cloves inside of hen cavities [as well as around outside] 4. Brushed melted butter on skin 5. Sprinkled garlic & onion powder on skin 5. Baked 30 minutes at 450 [instead of 25 min] & baked 35 minutes at 350 [instead of 25 min] These turned out GREAT! I will definitely make again! Highly recommend giving it a try! :)

Yet another hit with the family! This was very flavorful and moist. It is a bit "lemony and garlicky" as my kids said so those who can't handle the taste, adjust as necessary. I did like others who rated and put a mix of 1/4 cup butter, fresh rosemary, mashed garlic and a bit of lemon juice under the breast skin. I came out excellent!!

My husband and I made these flavorful, tender Cornish games hens and they were fabulous! We only prepared two hens because 1/2 hen is more than enough per person, especially when paired with hearty side dishes, such as green bean casserole and mashed potatoes. I used minced garlic to enhance the flavor and added butter and herbs under the skin to make the roasted hens extra tasty and attractive. I used the drippings to make a delicious gravy, similar to a country gravy. To make the gravy, I transferred all of the drippings to a pan on the stove top and simmered them until they were reduced. I then added 1 tablespoon of flour, mixing constantly to create a roux. I slowly added 1/3 cup milk & heavy cream and 1/3 cup chicken stock. The result was a rich, nicely colored gravy, in fact, the best I have ever tasted. You may need to experiment with the amounts of flour and dairy to create your preferred consistency, just remember to stir quickly and continuously in order to avoid lumps. This gourmet meal was exceptionally delicious, and much easier to prepare than expected. The hens pair well with white wine, in particular the sweetness of a Riesling offsets the savory flavors of the food.

Tasty, tasty! I would add more lemons however to stuff inside the bird, and would also rub the bird with the lemons if you're looking for more tang.

How delicious! I roasted these hens breast down which allowed the lemon juice and rosemary to be asborbed in the breast. I will definitely use this for chicken.

One of my wife's absolute favorites, and my go-to romantic meal. I will say that I agree with the other reviews that mentioned doubling the sauce, adding a little juice to the pan, and a little seasoning under the skin of the birds. Oh ... and one warning from a disaster I had a few years back ... when adding white wine to a hot glass baking dish, make sure the wine is room temp! Cold liquid on hot glass = very messy kitchen disaster.

Absolutely delicious! I have made this dish several times now and each time it comes out great and tastes very good. Every time I have made this, I have omitted the white wine because I never seem to have any, but it still comes out perfect! Other than that, I follow the rest of the directions and ingredients exactly as stated. I usually serve this with some garlic mashed potatoes (sometimes I thicken the gravy from the hen to go with the potatoes) and steamed veggies.

I was proud of my hens. Two hens were used and I used the same amount of liquid for the sauce. I stuffed the hens with dried rosemary and fresh garlic. I rubbed the hens with olive oil then sprinkled them with salt, pepper, and Emeril's Essence. I took Ashley_D's advice on cooking the hens: Bake breast side up for 30 minutes at 350, bake breast side down for 30 minutes, and then breast side up for 10 minutes at 400. Thanks Ashley_D!

This was a wonderful way to prepare Cornish Hens. I only used two hens, but kept the other ingredients the same. I used minced garlic instead of cloves and just distributed them generously around the hens. Each hen got two lemon wedges and they were yummy. I lightly squeezed them into the cavities first. As others had suggested, I first poured the remainder of the soup broth into the pan to prevent the garlic from burning. Since I added extra broth, I mixed the 1/3 cup of broth with 2/3 cup of wine. More would have been fine, too, since I could not taste the wine flavor. It was still very tasty, though. My daughter and I both loved this recipe. Thank you for submitting it!

I used the seasonings and mixed it with olive oil, then stuffed it under the skin of the birds, as well as inside the cavity. Used the lemons to squeeze over the top and inside before stuffing them inside. The sauce wasn't bad at all. This is an easy dinner and I will probably make it again!

Wow -- these were good and veeeery tender. My husband loved this meal and thought I had spent a lot more time on it than I really did. :o)

I HAVE TO SAY BY AND FAR AN ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC RECIPE!!! THE TASTE IS SENSATIONAL AND THE POSSIBILITIES FOR A DRESS-UP OR DRESS-DOWN PRESENTATION ARE ENDLESS! I HAVE MADE THIS FOR ALL OF MY FRIENDS, ASSISTED A FIANCEE'(MALE) IN A VERY ROMANTIC CANDLELITE DINNER AND SHARED THE RECIPE WITH ALMOST MY ENTIRE WORKFORCE! KuDOS! MY SUGGESTION: USE WHATEVER/AS MANY FRESH HERBS AS YOUR BIRD WILL HOLD AND TOP OFF WITH THE LEMON AND SOME GARLIC INSIDE...I ALSO INJECTED THE BIRDS WITH A BUTTER AND CAJUN SPICE MARINADE!

Excellent - I take chef's pride in the oven stuffers I normally make because they are great. But this is by far the best tasting ovenstuffer I have ever made. The medley of flavors was perfect. I followed the directions per the original recipe with the following modifications: I lined the bottom of a roasting pan with sliced sweet potatoes (filled across the entire bottom); I used two 6lb oven stuffers; 1/3 cup white cooking wine and 1/3 cup sherry cooking wine; 1 Can chicken broth (1/3 cup poured in at the beginning and 2/3 cup after 30 minutes of cooking). In each chicken underneath the skin over the breast, I placed 2 tbs margarine mashed up with 1 tsp minced garlic, 1tsp dried rosemary and fresh lemon juice from two of the wedges. Inside the cavity I placed 2 tbs minced garlic and 1/4 of a yellow onion along with 2 lemon wedges and a fresh sprig of rosemary. I only had about 16 cloves of garlic and that worked fine. Total Cooking Time was 2 hours (30 Minutes at 450 and 90 minutes at 350) SIMPLY DELICIOUS. Will definetly make this again.

Great recipe! I do think that everyone who states that cooking times are off should go buy an oven thermometer!! I believe you would all be surprised.

These were fabulous. In addition to putting lemon and rosemary in the cavity, I added some garlic cloves. I also added some thinly sliced lemon and butter under the skin of each hen. Had to cook them longer and at a lower temperature so the hens would cook through first and not burn on the outside. I started at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes and then increased the temp to 450 to get the skin crispy.

I didn't follow this recipe to the letter, but borrowed some of the basic ideas. I seasoned the inside of the hens with kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper and then stuffed them with the lemon and rosemary and added two cloves of garlic as well. For the outside, I melted a cube of salted butter (I made eight hens, you could probably use less,) and added fresh chopped rosemary, sage and thyme with one clove of crushed garlic. I brushed this mixture under the skin making sure to get a lot of the herbs there to flavor the meat, and then outside of the skin as well. I baked them for approx 90 minutes and VOILA! My guests raved! I served the hens with wild rice with oyster mushrooms and pine nuts, and pan roasted asparagus and homemade peasant bread. It was a lovely meal, and my guests are still talking about it :)

After 40 years, I finally found a cornish hen recipe I'll keep! I followed suggestions and made a paste of EVOO, butter, garlic, lemon and rosemary in the am, then put under the skin just before baking. I put garlic with lemon and rosemary in the cavity and poured broth and wine in the pan to keep the garlic from burning and also to have the broth pick up the garlic flavor. I crushed the garlic in the sauce to put over the hens and also to spread on a baguette. My only regret is that I made only 2 and have no leftovers.15 other allrecipe.com entries are now trashed!

Made this tonight for christmas eve, first time making dinner for the family. I honestly don't think I've ever had cornish hens before, but it was a HIT with my family. My brother-in-law who said he had always hated them in the past really enjoyed this. I did make some changes. Since there were 6 adults and a toddler I made 9 hens, exactly what would fit in my king size roasting pan. First I melted some butter and minced some of the garlic, mixing it together. Each hen got a spoonful of that inside, then I squeezed a lemon slice (I quartered my lemons)inside the cavity and put that in, then my rosemary, I used several sprigs in each one, then another lemon wedge. Then I put some garlic and butter under the skin along with a couple thin slices of lemon. I added broth to the pan as well, I'm not sure how much since I eyeballed it but probably about 1/4-1/2 an inch deep in the pan (a lot haha). Since I had SO much garlic and the pan was crammed full I just threw a handful of cloves underneath each chicken and the garlic just floated around. I also doubled the wine and broth sauce I added at 350 degress. I read some people complain about it taking a lot longer and since I figured I had so much more I did 30 minutes at 450 degrees and then when it was down to 350 I was checking the temp every 10 minutes as I basted it. Honestly it was done within another 20 minutes, and I could of followed the recommended time and they would of been perfect. I am high altitude BTW.

I made traditional dressing with bread crumbs,minced onion,butter & savory with added dried cranberries...delicious!

So tasty!! I added fresh sprigs of thyme, too. This dish came out flavorful and savory. I had to add a solution of corn starch and water to the sauce in order for it to thicken on the stovetop.

I can't believe that this was sooo good. I followed the instruction to the "T". I did double up on the gravy, though. I also think that the burned garlic was the best part, as did my wife & pit bull. I had steamed broccoli and baked potatoes. It was superb. Please try this recipe, you wont regret it!

If I was buying a home and my real estate agent took me to a home that had the aroma of this dish, I would buy the home! The garlic was to die for. We really enjoyed the melding of the flavors of the recipe; they were just perfect. The only thing I have to fix is that because it is summer, I decided to use our toaster/broiler/rotisserie oven to keep it cooler in the house. I did use a roasting pan. The outside of the hens browned very quickly, so I tented them with foil. Even after cooking for the required time, the hens were not done on the inside. This could have been because of my oven, but after reading other reviews, I'm not so sure. Next time, (yes, yes definitely a next time) I will cook on a lower heat for a longer time after the initial roasting. 5 stars for flavor and 4 stars for having to adjust the times. :)

I just served this Sunday to my family and guests and it was a hit. My mother and friend are great natural cooks and I am not but can read and follow directions. They both said it was great, best Cornish hen they ever had and coming from them, I felt proud. I took advice from several other reviewers and rubbed minced garlic under skin plus cooked it 30 mins longer than recipe stated. Will definitely be making this again and again. Thanks for sharing..

This turned out great! Really good with garlic bread.

Fantastic dish.

Superb, Sublime. And Easy. Its the right amount of garlic: the whole and plentiful cloves roast up, then infuse the start of the sauce, which then becomes the gravy. I followed another user's advice by using a little corn starch to thicken. It made a light garlicky flavored gravy (still blending nicely with the other ingredients) that covered, for me, plain mash potatoes, so no need for garlic mash. Used 2 lemon wedges and rosemary sprigs, and squeezed a bit of lemon on the inside, wasn't too much. Love this recipe. I don't think its "basic" at all. It's simple but sophisticated. Cooking time perfect, moist, perfect doneness, no problem browning: that one reviewer needs his thermostat fixed. Thanks! My partner and I loved it.

I found in the past that a whole game hen was to much to eat so cut hens in half (only using 2 hens for 4 people). I layed them on a bed of rosemary and lemons, adding all 24 garlic cloves,broth, wine and olive oil. When making the gravy I took the rosemary & lemons out of juices, cooked down and served. Wonderful !!! Finger licking good.

Excellent recipe! The flavor combination of the rosemary and lemon was simply to die for!! The roasted garlic is a nice touch and everyone gets their own bird. Kind of fun!

I made it for a sweet Texan man who has made me a couple of delicious steak meals. I was dying to show off my chops. Apparently I did well because he was picking chicken off the bone, and then he moved on to my plate. I pretty much followed the recipe, except I dry brined the hens for 20-24 hours before roasting. I always dry brine chicken and steak if I'm grilling or roasting and have time. I firmly believe this is why my chicken is always juicy and moist. After his first bite, he instantly commented that the chicken was so moist. All dry brining involves is salting the meat and placing in the refrigerator for 24 hours. This helps give it a crispy skin and juicy meat. I also deglazed the pan with creme and white wine, then reduced for a sauce over my cauliflower-mash. The chicken didn't need any sauce. So yummy!

I searched for a long time for a Cornish Hen recipes since I had never made them before, and did I find a winner! It was so easy, flavorful, and juicy! I did make a few modifications, I used 2 hens since it's just my husband and I, In the cavity of each bird I put a quarter lemon, 2 cloves of garlic and 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary. I read the recipe wrong and actually rubbed 1 tbsp of olive oil on each hen, but still came out good. I then put 1 tbsp butter under the skin on each breast, along with 2 sprigs of the fresh rosemary. I sprinkled some poultry seasoning on each hen along with a lemon slice on the breast and then placed them in my roasting pan on top of cubed yukon gold potatoes. After roasting I took 2/3 c. of cheap pinot grigio, 2/3 c. chicken broth, and about 5 cloves of minced garlic and used that to pour over the hens and baste with. Holy cats was this great! My whole house smelt amazing, and the potatoes were the best I'd ever had!

Hen was tender but didn't have a lot of flavor even with all that garlic. I think I prefer seasoning under the skin and that's what I'll do next time.

Man! Was this good!!! Loved it!!! I only baked two but used the same amount of liquid! I also threw in a clove of garlic inside the cavity of the hen. I added some chicken stock to the bottom of the pan so the garlic didn't burn! I might have cooked it an extra 10 minutes because it didn't reach 180 at the suggested time!! The result was delicious, worthwhile hen that I would make again!

These are SO moist and delicious. I rubbed minced garlic, rosemary under the skin of the hen and then every time I basted the birds, I pushed the broth mixture under the skin. Before serving I removed all the skin to save calories and it was delicious. The only downside to this dish is the difficulty in cutting the hens after they are cooked (and very hot), which I found to be cumbersome and did not produce the prettiest presentation. Luckily the flavor made up for it! I made this with the Roasted Vegetable recipe from this site...a yummy dinner!

These were good, however next time I will add lemon juice to the broth mixture that gets poured over the top. The meat that absorbed the lemon flavor from the lemon INSIDE the bird ended up being the best, the other meat could have used a more tart punch. Thats my two cents. :)

I used this recipe in the crock pot. I left it to cook while I was at work and the meat just fell off the bone when we ate it. Delicious. Thank you for sharing your recipe.

WOW, great recipe!!!! Subtract 100 degrees and add 30 mins cooking time. Add another quarter lemon, basil, small ginger root, and stuff as many garlic as you can. Inject with cajun marinade. AWESOME! I used 2 hens.

I made this as a 'pre-Thanksgiving' meal when I learned our Thanksgiving hosts would not be serving the traditional turkey dinner. I listened to the other reviews and added chicken broth to the roasting pan to ensure that the garlic didn't burn. I served the hens with purple fingerling potatoes, asparagus, and a spinach/bacon salad. The meal was a hit and everyone enjoyed the hens. For purchasing reference- the males each ate a whole hen, and the females ate a 1/2 hen a piece.

I've made this twice and my husband loves it. I marinated the hens with olive oil, salt and pepper as the recipe says, but I added dry herbs and then put the hens in the fridge for a few hours before sending them into the oven.

This was fantastic! I made it for my parents on Christmas Day and they loved it. I doubled up on the sauce, but it didn't thicken quite as much as I would have liked even after I added cornstarch. Next time I will boil it for longer. I served this with Suzy's Mashed Red Potatoes and reduced fat (Giant Eagle brand) crescent rolls. Will definitely make again!

The hen turned out yummy, though a bit dry. I recommend using 350 degree heat for the full hour instead of baking at 450 for the first 25 minutes. Also, try using an orange wedge in place of lemon.

Have made this several times, the only thing I do different is I sprinkle crushed garlic around the birds. I buy crushed garlic in a large bottle because I use it so much. It goes well with a wild rice.

Instead of roasting, I cooked this in the crock pot, which made it sooo moist. Flavor is mild but good.

These were really really good and very easy! I doubled the sauce and that was the only change I made... I will make this again...SOON!

did care for this to bland on flavor. don't plan to make again

This recipe was mediocre at best, and just wasn't terribly impressive. It had a strong flavor of something rather bitter, and I followed the recipe exactly, so I have no idea what that taste was.

KEEPER! I have always struggled with a way to make Cornish hens both flavorful and tender. But since I like the idea of serving them for special occasions, I have kept at it. Finally, I can stop the search! Simply wonderful recipe, easy to do with fabulous results. As so many others, I did my own adaption: I like mild garlic flavor, so for two hens, I only used one head of garlic, about 8 cloves. That was perfect for us. I also omitted the rosemary and added a quarter of an orange to the cavity, with one big slice of lemon. It ended up giving a lovely orange/citrus flavor to the sauce. Next time, I might add a bit of orange juice to the sauce as well. Baking time was spot on (I agree with others recommending an oven thermometer) and the birds were a lovely brown-golden color. Moist and tasty. Thank you for such a great recipe!

Beautiful presentation and nice taste but I recommend using a little more salt.

This was a pretty easy recipe and was soooo delicious. Everyone loved it. Next time I make it, I'll double the sauce because it had awesome flavor. It did take quite a bit longer than the recipe states to get the juices to run clear though. It was over an hour vs the 25 minutes listed. I took an idea from another rater and placed the hens on top of peeled, sliced potatoes while roasting and threw in some sliced mushrooms for the last 30 minutes. That became our vegetables for the meal. Thanks for the great recipe!

Pretty easy and very good! I bought cornish game hens because they were on sale, I never made them before. Thanks to this recipe they turned out great! I followed it almost exactly. I only made 2 birds, but I kept the amounts the same for the suace ingredients, as other reviewers had suggested to double the sauce - they were right! The birds came out moist and succulent and tasty, and although it took a long time to cook it was quite easy. The addition of roasted potatoes and garlic bread made a very satisfying meal. This one is going in the recipe box!

This dish came out amazing, the whole family loved it. I added some more wine to the garlic & pan drippings and then hit it with a hand stick mixer to purée it.

I tried making this twice, and both times the PARTS THAT WERE COOKED were fine... but neither time was it cooked all the way through, and I had to put half of the hens back in the oven for another half hour (after already adding an extra 10 minutes to the second cooking time). Presentation was great, but having raw bits of hen definitely put a damper on my Thanksgiving.

Was really moist and the skin was flavored nicely however I'll take everyone's advice (which I didn't see until now) and put garlic, lemon, and rosemary under the skin. I think then it will be perfect! I aslo cooked for much longer.. almost 40 minutes longer.

This is the best recipe for Cornish Hen's I have tried. I only made a few changes. When putting the rosemary and lemon in the cavity I added minced garlic. Also when I rubbed the chicken with olive oil I mixed in softened butter. I added a small amount of chicken broth like others suggested and my garlic didn't burn. Me and my boyfriend loved it!!!

I enjoyed this recipe. The cook time was a bit longer than the recipe stated, which wasn't a bother really because I always leave time for projects like this anyway. This was the first time I'd prepared Cornish Game Hens. The scent during cooking was very nice! I loved the garlic cloves that turned out afterward, those were an extra treat. My husband gave me a big thumbs up. We'll have this again.

I only cooked 2 hens verses the 4 and I still have left overs. I kept the liquids the same as I am a sauce lover plus I wanted enough to coat the hens while they were cooking. I had left over celery. Maui onion (sweet onion) and carrots from the holidays so I added in half a stalk of celery chopped very fine along with roughly 1/4 cup fine chopped maui onion to each hen inside along with the lemon and the rosemary. I also crushed up 3 galric cloves to each hen and placed inside as well then closed them up with a tooth pick. I placed carrots around the hens along with the galric cloves that was suggested. I did have to cook a little do to my addings but only another 10 minutes at the 350 temperature. After I took out from oven I squeezed all the lemon juice fromt eh lemons over the hens. Nice touch of flavor. I cooked herb rice to go along with dish and I have to say it was very yummy, delicous to the mouth and the smell is still wafting in my house today. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.

This is the first time in my life that I've made Cornish hens, and they were awesome! I thought the lemon and rosemary flavors were divine together. I didn't taste the garlic very much though. Maybe next time I'll throw a few cloves in each hen? Don't know, but it was delicious either way!

My wife and I loved the recipe. As a side we had chedder and broccolli rice (lipton)...was very good. We only made 2 hens and made the following amendments to the recipe. We didnt have flour though, so we dont know how much to add...but it definitely would have made the sauce even better (probably 5 stars)! Recipe amendment: Double ALL ingredients for 4 hens. Additional 1/3 cup wine and 1/3 cup chicken broth Step 2 Amendments: Add 1/3 cup chicken broth and 1/3 cup wine to pan. Cook at 350 degrees (when making 2 hens). Step 3 AmendmentsBaste every 10 minutes. When/if sauce gets low - add another 1/3 cup whine and 1/3 cup chicken broth. Step 4: Add flour/corn starch to thicken sauce.

The chicken is really tender- Taste excellent too. Could add a little bit of salt but, overall it has wonderful taste.

I used thyme instead of rosemary - personal preference. Also used minced garlic instead of whole cloves. Only did two hens but the only thing I cut down on was the oil - otherwise it worked out fine. I had to cook the hens about 75 minutes, and they were still just barely done (thermometer read 165). I boiled the sauce 10 minutes before I just added cornstarch to speed things up. Flavor was magnificent, though - would absolutely serve for company next time!

The hens came out very good. I followed the recipe. The only thing I did as addition was, I added butter and minced garlic under the skin and added chicken broth to the roaster to prevent the garlic from burning.

It was indeed very moist. Next time though I'll put more lemon in the cavity. Since I doubled the liquids, there was more than enough for gravy. I was surprised that the garlic didn't render it too garlicky (I've used like 30 cloves). I reduced the liquid and added 8 ounces of whole mushrooms. Salt & pepper to taste and thicken it a bit with cornstarch at the end of cooking. It's great over mashed potatoes!

Really nice recipe! Great flavor...put a bunch of minced garlic in the cavity along with lemons, onion, and rosemary. Perfect timing, 425 for 25 min. then another 25 at 350. I let sit for 10 min out of the oven- delicious! Served with sweet potatoes and rice.

Excellent!! Whole family enjoyed these SOOO much! Didn't change a thing, followed the recipe exact and they were delicious. Will definitely make again!

Love this recipe. I don't use the rosemary though, not my favorite. I use garlic instead. I also mix butter, garlic, salt, pepper, and a little lemon juice and stuff under the skin on both the upper and under sides of the hen. Delicious, thanks for sharing!

This was OK. The chicken was a bit bland and could certainly use more flavor on the skin (and a rub under. Certainly moist. The best part (and it was GOOD) was the sauce rendered from the basting juices- garlicly deliciousness. I would make again

This recipe was simple, elegant and delicious.

This is fabulous! I made it again last weekend. For whatever reason, I don't get a lot of drippings and so I've been a little bit short on sauce; I doubled up the chicken stock and the wine and then poured that over cooked wild rice that I prepared with chicken stock. Yum.

The recipe was very easy to follow, and the end result was delicous! We chunked up some red skinned potatoes and tossed them in olive oil, some of the fresh rosemary, and the juice from the other half of the lemon. Then we we fried them in a pan and added some chicken broth. It was an excellent side dish for the hens.

Very easy , very good , no leftovers. Thanks

This was great. I stuffed the cavities with bits of lemon, onion and garlic in addition to the rosemary. The sauce was fantastic. I did cook them for an additional 30 minutes and broiled them on high for about 5 minutes to get the skin extra crispy. Very good.

I tried this after my boyfriend came home with two Cornish game hens and expected me to do something with them. I did a search and came up with this recipe. We both ended up loving this dish. I did make some modifications after reading the other reviews: I'm a flavor junkie, so I mixed up 1 tps. each of Emeril's Chicken Rub, dried Rosemary, and Italian garlic seasoning with the 3 tbs. of oil called for. I made inicisions under the skin of the hens and spooned a couple teaspoons of this mixture under the skin and a couple over the skin. I then seasoned the outside of the birds and the cavities with Kosher salt and plenty of black pepper. I only used two hens, but used one whole lemon, squeezing the juice of the lemon all over the birds and over the garlic cloves in the pan, and then stuffing the birds as directed (the birds will only fit a quarter of one lemon in the cavity). I also didn't have enough fresh garlic on hand, so I used a jar of pearl onions to supplement the garlic and dumped the onion juice from the jar into the roasting pan. This kept everything juicy until phase two. I didn't have white wine, so I used a red Zinfandel, some water, and I added baby Bella mushrooms cut into quarters to the pan for the second half of roasting. I added extra garlic seasoning and Emeril's Chicken rub to the mushrooms. It was awesome. The other adjustment I made was the cooking time - if you have a "cool" oven like I do, just crank up the temp 10 degrees and cook 5 to 10

We were very impressed with how this turned out! Delicious, flavorful, and juicy meat. The sauce was AMAZING! I halved the recipe, using only 2 hens. I kept the sauce amounts the same though, but I did only use 7 cloves of garlic. That was just the right amount for us and I will do the same next time I make this. Mine took longer to cook that stated, but that could have been the size of my hens or my oven. They took about an hour and fifteen minutes to cook through. Absolutely delicious; my fiance could not stop raving. Thank you!

I adapted this recipe for an oven roaster with great success. Have substituted sherry for white wine and different combinations of herbs such as apple with sage or the lemon with parsley. Everyone loves the gravy that this makes!

These were pretty good. It definitely needed to cook 15-20 more minutes. The lemon came through somewhat strong so next time I think I'll either add more rosemary or an orange slice.

I will make this again but put the spices underneath the skin for more flavor. Took longer than the written time to finish cooking.

Incredible!

Very simple, tastes wonderful. I rubbed the inside of the hens with chopped garlic so that the flavor would absorb better into the meat, then stuffed with the lemon and rosemary. The garlic on the outside of the hens needs to be whole cloves so that it does not burn. Also, I increased the amounts of white wine and broth to 1 cup each, so that I could be liberal with using it on the sides that accompany the meal. I added some chopped parsley to the sauce at the end to finish, and served with Parmesan mashed potatoes (with the reduced sauce on top)...delicious!

Phenomenal! Used a small roaster chicken, instead of the game hens. This was as good as the Butter Roast Chicken on this site, with less guilt! I used laura.bora's suggestion of making the butter / lemon juice / rosemary / garlic mix and putting it under the skin. Stuffed the cavity with a quartered onion, sprinkled with dried rosemary. (Didn't have a real lemon). Doubled the broth and wine, and added a touch of cayenne and a splash of lemon juice. Skipped step four and just carved the chicken, dipping the pieces into the pan juices. The five year olds devoured this in record time, forgetting all about their "kid wine" that usually cites precedence over anything!

Great recipe! I had never made cornish hens before and wanted to give them a try. This was the perfect recipe to start with. Very simple to put together and bake. I did use all chicken broth instead of wine because I didn't have any. Loved the flavors and the chicken turned out so moist!

This recipe was easy and delicious. I read a lot of reviews before making it and made the following changes: I added 1 cup of wine, 1 cup of chicken broth and 4 tablespoons of olive oil at the beginning of cooking so the garlic would not burn and there would be enough juice for gravy. I cooked this uncovered and it seemed to work well. The outer skin was crisp but not too crisp. I followed all other directions and strongly suggest making this recipe. My dinner guests loved this dish!

This recipe is incredible. I ate my hen with my hands, hot from the oven, juices running down my fingers like I was in Game of Thrones. I substituted sage for rosemary (I don't really care for rosemary) and threw in some chopped onions and chopped mushrooms. Skipped the white wine 'cause I didn't have any, and basted with some bone broth I'd made previously. Delicious. A meal fit for a Lannister. Or a Manderly.

I roasted the hens for extra 10-15 minutes because of the other reviews, but it probably would've been ok without the extra time. Meat was tender, and full of flavor, both me and my wife loved it! I doubled the lemon per hen, and I added salt and pepper on the inside, too... I followed the rest of it exactly.

This was a hit with my family...moist and delicious. I modified the recipe slightly. I put the broth and vinegar in the roasting pan from the beginning. The birds actually sat in it like a marinade, in the fridge, for a few hours before cooking. I also added a clove of garlic in the cavity along with the lemon and rosemary. I cooked it for an hour and a half based on other reviews. It was excellent!

Yummy! I did 2 hens but used the 4 hen sauce recipe. At the end of the cooking time I poured off the liquid into a sauce pan and returned the hens to the 350° oven (to brown a little more) while I reduced the sauce. Did I mention "yummy"?

Hmmm - we were not too impressed. Disappointed considering the high ratings! I found the meat just ok - not super flavorful and I did add the garlic/lemon/rosemary butter under the skin. Otherwise followed the instructions exactly and even added 15 minutes extra cooking time and I was still worried the meat was a little underdone.