Name: Roasted Quail with Sweetbread Stuffing and Cassis Sauce
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients: 1 ½ lb(s) veal sweetbreads, thoroughly washed, membrane peeled and poached (672 g); Salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste; Pinch of chopped fresh thyme; 2 slices of double smoked bacon, diced, blanched; 1 cooking onion, diced; 6 quail, boned from the inside or left together; 6 savoy cabbage leaves, blanched just until softened; sprigs of fresh thyme; 3 oz crème de cassis liquor (90 ml); ¾ cup chicken stock (175 ml); 1 cup cassis berries (250 ml); 1 tsp butter (15 ml); 18 Italian chestnuts, roasted; 1 to 2 tbsp. olive oil (15 to 30 ml); 1 to 2 tbsp. unsalted butter (15 to 30 ml); 1 lb(s) butternut squash, peeled and diced, roasted (454 g); 18 fingerling potatoes, peeled, parboiled; Salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste; Sprigs of herbs, to garnish platter (optional)

Roasted Quail with Sweetbread Stuffing and Cassis Sauce

YIELDS

6 servings

Recipe courtesy Pascal Ribreau, Célestin, Toronto.

Ingredients

Roasted Quail with Sweetbread

1 ½

lb(s) veal sweetbreads, thoroughly washed, membrane peeled and poached (672 g)

Salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste

Pinch of chopped fresh thyme

slices of double smoked bacon, diced, blanched

cooking onion, diced

quail, boned from the inside or left together

savoy cabbage leaves, blanched just until softened

sprigs of fresh thyme

Cassis Berry Sauce

oz crème de cassis liquor (90 ml)

cup chicken stock (175 ml)

cup cassis berries (250 ml)

tsp butter (15 ml)

Assembly

Italian chestnuts, roasted

to 2 tbsp. olive oil (15 to 30 ml)

to 2 tbsp. unsalted butter (15 to 30 ml)

lb(s) butternut squash, peeled and diced, roasted (454 g)

fingerling potatoes, peeled, parboiled

Salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste

Sprigs of herbs, to garnish platter (optional)

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Directions

Step 1

Fry bacon until crispy. Add sweetbreads and sauté over medium heat, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add onions and thyme to mixture and sauté until soft, about 3 to 5 minutes. Season mixture with salt and pepper to taste.

Step 2

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Step 3

Lay out cabbage leaves. Put 1 tbsp. of the sweetbread mixture in the centre. Fold up the sides and then roll to form a little parcel. Stuff into the quail. Truss the bird with butcher twine. Transfer to a large baking sheet with sprigs of thyme. Roast quails until golden, about 15 minutes to 20 minutes.

Step 4

Add the crème de cassis liqueur to a pan, let warm over medium high heat and then ignite with a long match. The alcohol should burn off in a few seconds and the flame will extinguish. Add chicken stock. (If flame does not extinguish, cover pan with lid.) Reduce chicken stock to a syrupy consistency, about 10 to 15 minutes. Add berries and let heat through. Swirl in butter and remove from heat.

Step 5

When ready to serve, saute the butternut squash, parboiled fingerling potatoes and roasted chestnuts in butter and oil in a large sauté pan over medium high heat until heated through. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer the sautéed vegetables to a platter. Top vegetables with quail and cassis berry sauce. Garnish with some sprigs of herbs if desired.

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