Scots Pheasant Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Melt half the butter in a skillet.
• Add pheasant and brown on all sides.
• Remove pheasant to a plate.
• Melt remaining butter.
• Add apples and cook until they begin to color.
• Place half the apples in a casserole dish.
• Put pheasant in the casserole breast down.
• Arrange remaining apples around bird.
• Pour in half the cream.
• Cover and bake for 40 minutes.
• Turn bird over and cook for 35 minutes more.
• Remove casserole from oven.
• Increase heat to 450°F
• Pour Drambuie and remaining cream over bird.
• Add salt and pepper to taste.
• Return to oven for 5-10 minutes.

Steps:

• In a small heatproof bowl cover apricots with boiling water and soak 10 minutes. Drain apricots and cut into quarters. In a small saucepan simmer wine, liqueur, lime juice, and sugar 5 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Cut off legs of pheasants and reserve for another use. Sprinkle pheasants inside and out with pepper and salt to taste. Put 1 teaspoon thyme and 1 bay leaf in cavity of each pheasant and close cavities with skewers or toothpicks so that pheasants hold their shape.
• Brush pheasants with oil and in a roasting pan arrange, breast side down. Roast pheasants 20 minutes and discard any fat in roasting pan. Turn pheasants over and to pan add apricots, wine mixture, and dates. Roast pheasants, adding about 1/2 cup water if all liquid evaporates, 25 minutes more, or until thermometer inserted in thickest part of breast registers 160°F. Let pheasants stand 10 minutes.
• Transfer pheasants to a cutting board and cut each in half. Serve pheasants with apricot date sauce and garnish with thyme.

Steps:

• Place the apples into a small saucepan with the water, thyme, sugar, and salt. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the apples have softened and cooked down to a chunky applesauce, about 15 minutes. Remove the applesauce from the heat and stir in the breadcrumbs.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Prepare the pheasant breasts to be stuffed by cutting a pocket horizontally into each breast. Spoon the apple and bread crumb stuffing into each breast. Wrap each breast with two strips of bacon and place them into a baking dish with the chopped onion. Pour the chicken stock over the pheasant breasts and season with salt and pepper.
• Roast the pheasant breasts in the preheated oven until well done and the juices from the meat run clear, 30 to 35 minutes.
• Remove the breasts from the baking dish and cover with aluminum foil. Pour the juices from the baking dish into a small saucepan with the cider vinegar and prunes; bring to a boil over high heat. Stir in the cream and continue to boil until thickened.
• Slice the breasts diagonally and fan out on the serving platter, spoon the prune sauce over the slices to serve.