W is for Woodcock - A to Z Challenge 2015

Despite the fact that this is the last name of our son-in-law (the artist) I know little or nothing about the Woodcock. Through his blog, not often published, I also know it is called a Scolopax. Apparently they are a genus of 7 or 8 small wading birds. Most of them are found in the Northern hemisphere. Some of the varieties have been overhunted and are considered pretty scarce. They feed at night and use their long bills to pull up worms and such. As you can see, although they are pretty small, they are plump little birds which would make them interesting for the table.
As  I think it extremely unlikely that anyone reading this would get a chance to eat woodcock, I haven’t worried about the fact that this recipe looks a tad complicated. The recipe came from ShootingUK

Roasted woodcock with rosti potato and caramelised parsnips

• Sporting Gun

This woodcock recipe is delicious, looks fantastic and doesn't take long to cook
 
This woodcock recipe requires a brace of woodcocks and will serve two
WHAT YOU’LL NEED
»» brace woodcocks (2)
»» 2 parsnips
»» 1 grated large potato
»» salt and pepper
»» 1 tsp honey
»» 25g butter
»» 2 tsp veg oil
»» sugar
Prepare the woodcock Pluck the woodcocks as normal, but do not draw them
How to cook this woodcock recipe
1: Pan roast the birds in the oil and butter, thyme and garlic.
Seal off both sides and place the birds breast-up in a hot oven (preheated to 180-200 degrees) for eight minutes.
2: Take the woodcock out the oven and rest for four minutes.
3: Once rested, take off the legs and crown it.
4: Use sharp scissors to remove the backbone and entrails. Set this aside to use for gravy later.
5: Clean the parsnips, core them and cut into quarters.
Roast in the oven for 10 minutes in oil with a sprinkle of sugar, salt and pepper.
Remove from the oven and drizzle with honey.
6: Grate the potato and squeeze the excess starch out.
Mix the potato with some oil and butter and season it.
Squeeze the potato into a patty shape.
Fry until brown on both sides (around five minutes for each side).
7: Place the cooked potato rosti on a plate and put the woodcock breast and legs on top. Serve with the caramelised parsnip.
Mark has added chopped, creamed savoy cabbage to the dish in the picture above.
Have a great day