Here is an easy, but elegant, recipe that would be well-suited to a New Year's Eve dinner, a tasty lunch or supper on New Year's Day. It features a glaze using Utah's Amour Spreads Pear-Lavender Jam. --- I thought the jam would be a good partner for herbes de Provence, a dried herb mixture that usually has lavender in it.

This recipe serves two people as an entree (1 game hen per person). You could easily double or triple the recipe to serve 4-6. 

Ingredients:

2 Cornish game hens, thawed, giblets removed, and rinsed under cold water.

1 large or 2 medium garlic cloves, minced

2 Tbs. herbes de Provence

1 1/2 tsp. Kosher salt

1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

3 Tbs. Amour Spreads Pear Lavender jam (you could also substitute other flavors, like apricot-ginger or orange-habanero)

1/4 cup olive oil

Method:

Remove the game hens from the refrigerator about an hour before cooking and let them warm to room temperature. 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In a bowl, whisk together all of the ingredients (except the game hens) to form a paste. If the paste is too dry, just add some additional olive oil.

Alternatively, you could use a mini food processor or blender to create a smoother, less chunky paste.

Spread the paste all over the Cornish games hens (it's messy, but easiest to use your hands for this job).

Place the game hens, breast-side up, on a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet.

Pop the hens into the oven and cook for about 50 minutes to an hour, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thigh reads 165 degrees F. 

Remove the hens and allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving.