Title: Roasted Game Birds
Category: Game and Wild Birds
Cuisine: American
Servings: see below
Preheat oven as suggested for type of bird (see below). Sprinkle salt inside bird and place celery tops, bay leaf, and lemon slice or wedge in cavity. Tie legs closely together with string. Lightly sprinkle bird with paprika and onion slat, if desired.
Place bird on rack on open roasting pan. Cover breast with bacon slices; roast, uncovered, until bird is tender. Bird is done when legs can be moved up and down easily, or when two-tined fork is inserted between leg and body and the juices that escape are not pink. Times vary according to size of bird. Cut string on legs; discard celery, bay leaf and lemon before serving.
WILD GOOSE:
Preheat oven to 325 F. Prepare goose as above; bake 3 hours or until tender. One 6- to 8-pound wild goose makes about 6 servings.
GROUSE, QUAIL, SQUAB, PARTRIDGE OR PHEASANT:
Preheat oven to 375 F. Prepare bird as above; roast grouse and quail 25 to 35 minutes, squab and partridge 45 to 55 minutes, pheasant 1 hour and 15 minutes until tender. Depending on size, two quail or one squab makes 1 serving; one grouse or partridge makes 1 or 2 servings; one pheasant makes 2 servings.