Game Hen With Red Wine and Onion Sauce

It is officially cold! When the sunlight hits the snow, there is nothing more beautiful. Today, the ice on the lake is sky blue with patches of snow strewn about. It’s breathtaking. I anticipate the days when the trees transform into crystal. Sometimes, when I drive through New Ulm, I feel like we live in a Swiss village. The architecture, the monuments, and the snow make me think there will be ski lifts just around the bend. The best part about all of this snow is the joy it brings to our children’s hearts.
I like to look at the frozen lake while wearing my slippers, sipping coffee next to the fire place. I take pictures of those crystallized winter trees through my car window. I may even roll the window down for fifteen seconds if I can get a better shot. Not children, children want to feel the snow. They want to live it. They want to roll in the snow, make forts and snowmen. Kids want to touch the snow in their glove covered fingers. They want to stay in the cold until their cheeks become bright red, their nose starts to drip and their toes ache.
Sometimes I wonder, should I just bundle up and try it? Is this as fun as they say it is? Then, reality sets in, and I realize I don’t really like to be cold or wet. I don’t like having a runny nose and bright red cheeks. Instead, I revel in the joy I see in their faces as they trudge through the front door throwing off their boots and gloves all the while shouting about the amazing snow man they just created and whether or not we have cherry tomatoes for the eyes.
It brings so much pleasure to me to see delight in them. This week, my son Jack ran up to me in the market carrying a game hen. He thought it was a baby chicken and really wanted me to buy it. I followed him back to where he found it and tossed three of those little guys into the basket. Jack was thrilled. It took me a couple of days before I finally made them. Every night Jack asked, “When will we have those tiny chickens? Are you making them tonight?”
The night I made them, I brought Jack into the kitchen to help. We cut the hens out of the package and washed them. We danced them around on the counter a little bit. As I dried them off, I pretended they were wearing a shawl or a toga. I have made game hens several times in the past. However, until I made the hens with a child, I had no idea how much fun they can be. We draped them in herbs, olive oil and bacon. Those whimsical hens looked adorable in the roasting dish nestled in with onions and garlic.
I loved that Jack was excited to eat something other than a cheese burger. He helped me make a sauce by deglazing the roasting pan with red wine. Once the hen was on his plate along with a baked potato, he dug right in. First, he grabbed a hold of the tiny leg and ate it like a drumstick. We all laughed.
These hens are great to get your children excited about dinner. They are affordable and one hen easily feeds two people. Make some sauce and throw in a baked potato and you are finished. It is a great holiday meal for kids and adults alike. Imagine if you made a turkey for the grown up table and gave the kids game hens? They would get a kick out of that. The best thing is, when the children are filled with joy, you become even happier.