4    Squab or cornish game hens

      1 lg Carrot, diced

      2    Ribs celery, diced

      1 md Onion, diced

      2 qt Chicken stock or

           -reduced-salt broth
    1/4 ts Dried thyme

      3 lg Shallots, diced

    1/4 lb Bing cherries, pits removed

      1 c  Red wine

           Salt and pepper
    1/2 lb Salsify

           -(substitute parsnips)
      2 tb Lemon juice or white vinegar

      5 tb Unsalted butter

      1 tb Vegetable oil

      3 bn Fresh spinach

  1. Heat oven to 450 degrees. Cut (or have the butcher cut) legs and

  breast meat with wings attached from the carcass of each squab. Cut
  off wing tips. Cover breast and leg pieces and refrigerate. Place
  carcasses and wing tips in a roasting pan and cook in the oven until
  well browned.
  2. Add diced carrot, celery and onion to the pan and continue to roast

  until vegetables are soft. Reserve  3/4 cup of chicken stock and add
  the remainder to the pan along with the thyme. Lower heat to 375
  degrees and simmer stock for 2 to 3 hours. Strain through a fine
  sieve. There should be about 4 cups of strained stock. If there is
  more, pour the stock into a saucepan and boil atop the stove until
  reduced to 4 cups.
  3. In a saucepan, cook shallots in 1 tablespoon butter until

  softened. Add cherries and cover with red wine. Raise heat and boil
  wine until almost completely evaporated. Add strained squab stock and
  cook at a brisk simmer until reduced to sauce consistency, about 2
  cups. This will take an hour or more. Season to taste with salt and
  pepper.
  (Recipe may be done ahead to this point. Let sauce cool, cover
  surface with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Return squab and sauce to
  room temperature before continuing.)
  4. Peel salsify, placing peeled stalks in water with 2 tablespoons

  lemon juice or white vinegar. Slice salsify crosswise into thin
  rounds and dry on paper towels. Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large
  sauce pan. Add salsify and turn to coat with butter. Add  1/2 cup
  reserved stock and simmer until salsify is tender. Keep warm.
  5. Return oven to 450 degrees. Place remaining 2 tablespoons butter

  and 1 tablespoon oil in an oven-proof skillet large enough to hold
  the squab pieces in a single layer. (If necessary, use 2 skillets.)
  Brown pieces on all sides, then remove breast pieces. Place skillet
  in the oven and cook legs for 5 minutes. Add breast meat and cook for
  3 to 5 minutes, or until medium rare. Remove from oven and let meat

  rest, loosely covered for about 5 minutes. (If using Cornish game
  hens, cook until completely done.)
  6. Meanwhile, return salsify to the heat. Add spinach and remaining

  1/4 cup stock, cover pan and steam, tossing once or twice, until

  spinach is completely wilted. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
  7. Make a bed of spinach and salsify in the center of each plate.

  Pour or spoon cherry sauce around the spinach bed and arrange 2 squab
  breasts and 2 legs atop sauce on each plate. Serve with a sangiovese
  wine such as Atlas Peak.