Simple Christmas Dinner Meal Idea

A simple Christmas dinner is almost a contradiction in terms. There is so much preparation for the big day that the dinner is anti-climatic for the cook. That being said, as if you needed reminding hu, keeping Christmas simple is a worthy goal. There is less stress for the cook and the family when we keep the meal preparation trouble-free. To obtain this lofty Christmas goal, a little less cooking is required. Keep the Christmas main meal light by adding more fruit dishes that can be made ahead of time.

In place of turkey, make the main dish Cornish hens. These cook quicker and are succulent and juicy, just like a turkey. The presentation is the most important element so the dressed up Cornish hens make an elegant statement.

The centerpiece of the meal are the mouthwatering apricot glazed hens with a bread, sausage and sherry-soaked dried fruit stuffing that is worthy of your most critical guest.

This memorable low stress meal is intended for a small gathering of six or less and is intended to make everyone swoon, while keeping the cook happy at the same time.

Your stress free Christmas menu will consist of the following:

Stuffed Cornish Hens with Apricot Glaze
Bread-Sausage Stuffing

Ingredients

* 3 Cornish hens – 1-1/2 lbs each
* 1 tablespoon butter
* 1/3 cup apricot preserves
*2/3 cup chopped dried apricots
* 1/2 cup chopped dried cherries or raisins
* 1/2 cup sherry
* 8 ounces frozen breakfast sausage links, 8 links
* 1 large onion, chopped
* 6 slices firm white sandwich bread, cubed, about 5 cups
* 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
* 1 1/4 cup dried sage, divided
* 3/4 tsp salt, divided
* 1/4 tsp pepper, divided
* 1/2 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth

Instructions:

1. Preheat over to 425 degrees
2. Combine apricots, cherries and sherry
3. Reserve mixture
4. Cook sausage in skillet according to package directions
5. Remove all but 1 tablespoon of fat from skillet
6. Add onion
7. Cook over medium heat until soften – 4 minutes
8. Chop sausage
9. In bowl combine bread, sausage, onion, parsley, 1 tsp sage, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper
10. Add broth and reserved fruit mixture
11. Toss
12. Fill each hen cavity with stuffing about 1 cup
13. Sprinkle hens with remaining salt, pepper & sage
14. Truss
15. Place hens on rack in roasting pan
16. Roast 20 minutes
17. Brush with butter
18. Reduce oven temperature to 350 digress
19. Roast until meat thermometer inserted into thickest part of thigh registers 180 degrees
20. About 1 hour –5 minutes
21. Transfer remaining stuffing to buttered baking dish
22. Bake until browned around edges – 30 minutes
23. Combine preserves with 1-tablespoon water
24. Brush over hens twice during last 15 minutes of cooking time

Makes 6 servings

Add some sweet potatoes, green beans and rolls and you're Christmas dinner is complete. This year you can now enjoy your dinner with the rest of your family.

Article by:

Angela Tyler is a mom who would rather play than cook. If that sounds like you, you won't want to miss www.FreeQuickRecipes.com. And, if frugal cooking is your thing, then check out the Frugal Cooking Recipes on this site.

This article is available for reprint with author's resource box intact and all links live and clickable. Copyright is reserved by author.

Click the XML Icon to Receive Recipes Articles Via RSS!