Spring rains pouring on your barbecue and grilling plans? No worries!! Just heat up the oven, and in about an hour, these incredibly gorgeous and tasty Barbecued Oven-Roasted Split Cornish Hens will wow even the pickiest of guests! 

 

 

First, just to be clear, this is not a sponsored post. (I wish it was!) Actually, I won these products from Weber on a little Facebook contest! And I’m absolutely thrilled that I did, because this is some of the best barbecue sauce I’ve ever tried! And that honey rub and seasoning mix? Oh. My. GAWD. I’m going to be using them on everything!! 

I haven’t tried the marinade mix yet, but I’ll let you know how that is as soon as I do!

My hubby loved the flavors too, though! And said this is his new go-to bbq sauce from now on! So, if looking to try out a few new sauces and rubs this season, you might want to give these a try! 

 

 

Okay, so anyways, I happened to have two Cornish hens in the freezer just begging to be made into something delicious, and had originally planned to grill out or maybe smoke them. But those pesky spring showers and storms put a damper on my plans! 

But there’s nothing wrong with oven-barbecuing! And I wasn’t going to let a little thunder and lightning get in the way of good barbecue! So, if this happens to you this summer, here’s how to still enjoy a nice barbecued chicken meal made right in the oven with Cornish hens!

 

 

I just simply cut the backbone out with kitchen scissors, opened them up, and pressed the center of the breast down so that they would lay flay. Then placed them onto a rack on top of a foil-lined baking sheet, and dusted them nicely with the rub and the seasoning!  

 

 

 

 

I popped them into a preheated oven and baked them for 45 minutes, basting about 5 – 6 times with melted, real butter with sea salt by Minerva Dairy.

 

 

 

*Make sure you dab it on. Never brush it on or you’ll remove the all of the wonderful seasonings!

 

 

 

Then I removed them, basted them heavily with the barbecue sauce, and popped them back into the oven for another 10 – 15 minutes longer to set the sauce and finish baking the chicken!

 

 

 

 

And that’s IT. Yep!!! That’s ALL there is to it!!

SO easy, and so pretty!!! Good enough for company!!

 

 

 

 

 

While they were baking, I simply whipped us up a box of instant stuffing and heated up some buttery corn. Perfect for a family night supper, or easy Saturday or Sunday dinner!

 

 

 

 

And this SUPER simple meal was absolutely DELICIOUS!!

NO STRESS.

NO FUSS.

MINIMAL MESS.

This could be YOUR dinner tonight!!

 

 

 

And if stuffing and corn aren’t your thing, you can serve this with baked potatoes and steamed, buttered asparagus. Add a tossed salad, crusty bread, and a glass of wine, and it’s instantly guest-worthy! 

 

 

 

 

*Rule of thumb for Cornish hens is one hen per person. But if you have little ones that eat like birds, kids are usually perfectly happy with just a half. 

 

 

 

 

 

So if the spring rains and storms aren’t cooperating with your grilling plans, don’t fret! Oven-barbecued chicken is the next best thing!

So pick up a couple this week, and do try my Barbecued Oven-Roasted Split Cornish Hens this weekend! They look fancy, but no one will guess how easy they are to make!! Hope you all enjoy!!

 

 

Barbecued Oven Roasted Split Cornish Hens

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Ingredients

• 2 cornish hens, thawed, butterflied, and trimmed of any excess fat
• 4 Tbl. Minerva Dairy Amish Butter
• Weber Honey Garlic Rub
• Weber Kick'n Chicken Seasoning Mix
• Weber Bold & Thick Sweet 'n Spicy BBQ Sauce

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350º F.

Snip out backbones of thawed Cornish hens. Rinse with cold water, pat dry. (Trim any excess fat.)

Season with as much or little of the rub and seasoning mix as you'd like. Place onto a sprayed rack placed over a foil-lined baking sheet.

Pop into fully preheated oven and bake for 45 minutes, basting with melted butter 5 - 6 times. *Dab on, do not brush on or you'll remove and disturb seasonings.

After 45 minutes, remove, and heavily (or lightly) coat with BBQ sauce. (I only added sauce to the top and sides.) Pop back into the oven, and continue baking for 10 - 15 minutes longer until sauce is set and chicken is fully done. *But do not over-bake.

Remove from oven and let rest 10 - 15 minutes before serving.