I love this dish, and you will, too—and your guests will be impressed. Set the table for a special eating experience, including a few scissors to pass around and a bowl for the parchment paper. Then present guests with closed, tempting packets: when they cut open the parchment, the sight and bursting aroma of savory-stuffed quail will fill them with anticipation, and they will dive right in. As an accompaniment, I would serve a bowl of hot polenta, farro, or wild rice, or a bowl of beans and black kale. Serve family-style, putting the bowl in the middle of the table, so everyone can spoon some onto the plate next to the quail.
Recipe information
Yield
serves 6
Ingredients
RECOMMENDED EQUIPMENT
Preparation
Step 1
Preheat oven to 400°, and arrange two racks in the center of the oven. Pluck off any pinfeathers that remain on the quail (and remove skewers, or other material that hold the quail in shape). Rinse each bird in cold water and pat dry. Put them all in a large bowl, and toss with 2 tablespoons olive oil and 2 teaspoons salt, so they’re evenly coated.
Step 2
Peel, cut in half, and core the apples, then shred the halves through the large shredding holes of a box grater. Squeeze handfuls of the apples over a bowl, to collect the juices, and put the squeezed-out shreds in another bowl. You should end up with about 2 cups apple shreds and 1/2 cup or so juice.
Step 3
Stir the apple, bread crumbs, grated cheese, pine nuts, parsley, and thyme together. Drizzle over this the lemon juice and 2 tablespoons olive oil; season with 1 teaspoon salt and several grinds of black pepper. Toss well, so the stuffing is evenly moistened and seasoned.
Step 4
To stuff the quail: Set them, breast side up, on a cutting board. Spoon or push about 2 tablespoons of stuffing into each body cavity. Fold the quail’s legs together neatly and compactly—like a lady crossing her legs—and stick a toothpick through the tendons to hold them together. Tuck the wings under the back, so they stay in place.
Step 5
Pour in enough apple cider to the reserved juices to make 1 cup total, then stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
Step 6
Lay a cut piece of parchment in a shallow pasta or soup bowl, and set a bird in the middle of the paper, with the legs facing one long side of the paper. Top the quail with a sage leaf and a short branch of rosemary, and drizzle over it about 1 1/2 tablespoons of the seasoned juice. Pull the short edges of the parchment up over the quail, join them and fold them over an inch or so, so they hold together, and then fold over several more times, so the bird is enclosed with just a bit of space around it. Now tuck the open ends of the folded paper underneath the quail, forming a neat, fully closed packet.
Step 7
Place all the wrapped quail on the baking sheet, leaving at least 2 inches between them—you will probably need two sheets to hold them all. Set the sheets on the oven racks, and roast the quail about 25 minutes; then switch the sheets top to bottom and rotate them back to front, to ensure even cooking.
Step 8
Roast another 20 minutes or so (45 minutes in all), until the juices are bubbling and the quail are tender and nicely browned. (To test for doneness, remove one packet from the oven and unwrap. If it has a good roasted color and the juices look like light maple syrup, it should be done. If too pale, rewrap, roast another 5 to 10 minutes, and check again.)
Step 9
Serve right away, placing two wrapped packets on each dinner plate, with scissors for cutting the parchment (and a bowl for the paper) on the table.
