Description
This unusual and delicious creation was served at Annette's Fancy French Birthday.
It's unusual on two counts: the Capon is not something we see every day, and the stuffing is loaded with cooked fruits!
Region
Yield
8 Servings
Preparation time
4 hours
Ingredients
1 Capon
2 T kosher salt
4 sli Bacon (Apple Cider Cured)
1 lb Bread (cut into small cubes)
1 1⁄2 c Beef Stock (hot)
1⁄2 c Brandy (whisked into egg)
1 egg (lightly beaten)
6 Prunes (cooked, cut into pieces)
2 Peaches (cooked, cut into pieces)
3 Pears (cooked, cut into pieces)
3 Apricots (cooked, cut into pieces)
1 1⁄2 T Flour
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325.
- Rub the capon inside and out with Kosher salt.
- Prepare the stuffing by combining the cubed bread with the chestnuts, fruits, egg, and brandy. Toss lightly.
- Stuff the bird, then lay the bacon across the breast to protect it.
- Roast the bird for 25 minutes/lb + 10 minutes.
- An hour before the bird is done, add any vegetables to be roasted in the pan. Put the rest of the stuffing in the oven in a covered dish if you want some extra.
- 10 minutes before the bird is done, take the bacon off and broil the bird until the breast is nicely browned.
- Set the bird on a carving board. Unstuff it and allow it to cool while you make the sauce.
- Make a pan gravy with the beef stock. Serve in a gravy boat beside the carved capon and stuffing.
Notes
The original recipe called for cooked or canned fruits. I use canned fruits to good effect.
The stuffing recipe makes more than enough for the bird so you can bake the rest separately.
This is a peculiar recipe to pair a wine with. We tried a bordeaux (2005 Chateau Haut-Beausejours St. Estephe) but I think it would go better with a spicy, black-fruity Chateauneuf-du-Pape.
Source
St. Francis Hotel Cook Book