This sounds like a difficult recipe but in actual fact it is quite simple if you do it step by step. The first thing we need to do is to make the stuffing. Many people have made their own sage and onion stuffing before but this is a bit more adventurous. In a bowl put some fresh sausage meat. Into this we need to mix a couple of whole eggs. The mixture may at this point seem a bit wet and sloppy, this can be adjusted with breadcrumbs at the end. You will need to decide what flavor stuffing you want. Here we have used some cherries. These were pitted to remove the stones and then cooked down in a little red wine and sugar. When the cherries were cooked, which only takes a minute or two, they were removed from the wine and left to drain and cool. The remainder of the liquid was left on the heat and reduced until all that is left is a dark syrup. This will be used later in the sauce. We roughly chopped the cherries and added them to the sausage meat mix. We also added some salt and pepper and some chopped fresh thyme. This mix was then wrapped in clingfilm and chilled in the fridge.
The second part of the dish is the poussin. This to those who don't know is a small young chicken. They are widely available and are not expensive.
You need to make sure that the giblets have been removed as well as the feet and there are no feathers left. I then rub the skin with butter and then well sprinkle with salt and pepper. The stuffing mix is then pushed into the chicken, not from the head end. If there is any loose skin around the stuffing hole, this can be held together with a cocktail stick during cooking. The chicken will take about 15 to 20 minutes to cook. You need to make sure both the chicken and the stuffing are thoroughly cooked before serving.
On the skin of the breasts we have put some spinach mix. This is just a blend of finely chopped onion, some mixed wild mushrooms and some fresh chopped spinach. This was all pre cooked and spread over the chicken and cooked in the oven for the last few minutes of the cooking time. It only needs the time it takes to warm it through. That is it. We have served the chicken on a bed of thin chips and a little cherry sauce. This is your basic gravy that has had the reduced cherry juice we saved from before and even a few extra chopped cherries added. It gives a nice fruity taste that complements the chicken very well.
I hope that you give this a try. I enjoy this dish at dinner parties as the chicken does take a while to eat, it can be a bit fiddly but is a great icebreaker and in the end it adds to the fun.
I hope you enjoy it.
Paul Vincent, Head Chef.