A FAVORITE NOVEMBER 'REMEMBER' SUPPER ~ ROAST PHEASANT with 'SHOTGUN SAUCE' / PEAR & GOAT CHEESE SALAD

"It (pheasant) is the king of earthly poultry, as the primacy of aquatic birds belongs to the swan. What more exquisite flesh can you eat."

~ Olivier de Serres

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olivier_de_Serres )

~ Pheasant country (Hubbard Lake)

~ Prime pheasant habitat

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ROAST PHEASANT with 'SHOTGUN SAUCE'

~ With Michigan's prime habitat of open fields, forest edges, and marshy wetlands, 'Ring-necked Pheasants' thrive. This delicious recipe pays homage to this stately bird (almost too beautiful to eat) and hopefully my dear friend, Anne*, who verbally shared this treasured recipe, 'tweaked' a bit throughout the years.

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1 dressed and cleaned pheasant per person

vegetable oil

Basting Sauce:

Combination of orange juice, 7-up, and white wine

coarse salt & freshly ground pepper

Stuffing (per person)

1/3 cup cooked wild rice*

2 Tbsp. toasted pine nuts

1 Tbsp. fresh thyme

1 Tbsp. melted unsalted butter

coarse salt & freshly cracked pepper

Shotgun Sauce:

1 jar current jelly

2 Tbsp. butter

2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice

2 Tbsp. A-1 Steak sauce

2 Tbsp.Worcestershire sauce

2 jiggers good sherry (Harvey's Bristol Cream)

• Preheat oven to 450-degrees. Sprinkle inside and out of pheasant with salt & pepper. Brush with oil.
• Combine orange juice, 7-up and wine for basting sauce.
• Combine cooked rice, toasted pine nuts, butter, thyme, salt & pepper. Stuff pheasant with rice mixture.
• Arrange in roasting pan. Pop in oven and reduce heat to 350-degrees. Baste every 15 minutes with basting sauce. Do not overcook but roast until internal temperature reaches 160-180 degrees, perhaps 45 minutes depending on size of pheasant.
• Melt current jelly in saucepan. Combine remaining Shotgun Sauce ingredients. Brush with glaze the last 15-20 minutes.
• Remove from oven and let rest before serving with remainder of Shotgun Sauce and Pear & Goat Cheese Salad.

Note: 1 cup uncooked wild rice yields 4 cups cooked. Rinse rice and add 4 cups organic chicken stock or water mixed with orange juice for each cup of rice. Heat to boiling, cover and simmer over low hear 40-50 minutes, until grains are tender.

* Thank you dear Anne. This is a re-post in memory of my dear friend, who will live forever not only in the many times I have enjoyed this delicious treat in her home but her glorious way of, no matter what in life was going on, always said when asked, "As we speak, all is fine ...!" Besides this treasured recipe, I treasure/embrace her simple response.

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PEAR & GOAT CHEESE SALAD

~ Adapted from the original book, COOKING the NOUVELLE CUISINE in AMERICA, this flavorful autumn salad of pear and goat cheese is the perfect marriage of texture and taste.

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1/2 head Boston or Bibb lettuce per person

4 Tbsp. walnut or peanut oil

1 Tbsp. champagne or red wine vinegar

1/2 tsp. dry mustard

4 oz. Montrachet or other French goat cheese

1 ripe red pear

coarse salt & freshly ground pepper

• Combine oil, vinegar, mustard, salt & pepper and set aside. Just before serving slice goat cheese into small pieces and quarter the ripe pear, removing core from each quarter and cutting quarters into 1/4-inch slices. Drizzle lettuce with dressing and lightly toss.
• Place salad on left of serving plate, garnish upper right hand corner with pear slices and lower right hand corner with goat cheese slices.

Note: This recipe is for 1 person ... easily doubled or tripled.

"DON WE NOW OUR GAY APPAREL"

Fa-la-la, la-la-la, la-la-la.

DELICIOUS AUTUMN FEAST ... ROAST PHEASANT with WHISKY-CUMBERLAND SAUCE

BEAUTIFUL, DELICIOUS AND PLENTIFUL

THROUGHOUT the MICHIGAN NORTHWOODS

~ "Sorry old boy"

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ROAST PHEASANT with WHISKY-CUMBERLAND SAUCE

~ courtesy of Emeril Lagasse

1/4 cup Scotch whisky

2 oranges, cut in 1/8 ths

4 sprigs fresh thyme

2 (2 to 2 1/2 pound) pheasants

salt & freshly ground black pepper

6 slices halved bacon

Whisky~Cumberland Sauce

1 cup Scotch whisky

1/2 cup fresh orange juice

2 Tbsp. grated orange zest

1 cup red currant jelly

1/4 tsp salt

pinch cayenne

For the pheasant: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In bowl, toss oranges with 3 Tbsp of whisky. Rub pheasants with remaining 1 Tbsp. whisky and lightly season with salt and pepper. Stuff each pheasant with the oranges and 1 sprig of fresh thyme. Close the cavities with skewers. Wrap the breast of each pheasant with bacon and set in roasting pan. Roast pheasants until thickest part of breast registers 160 degrees, about 45 minutes. Remove from oven and let stand 10 minutes.

Cumberland Sauce:

Combine whisky, orange juice and orange zest in medium saucepan and bring to boil. Lower heat and simmer, stirring occasionally until reduced by 50 percent in volume to about 3/4 cup. Add currant jelly, salt, and cayenne and stir well. Cook until thickened about 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and pour into decorative bowl. Cool slightly before serving.

Remove bacon from pheasant breasts and cut each bird in half. Discard oranges and thyme in cavity. Serve hot with Whisky~Cumberland Sauce, wild rice and butter baked acorn squash seasoned with cracked pepper and brown sugar.