Quail

If you don’t want to roast the quail—perhaps you dread carving the little things or forcing it on your guests—you can take the breasts and thighs off the carcasses and sauté them. If you are ambitious, you can make a broth with the quail carcasses well ahead of time, reduce it to the consistency of hot maple syrup, and use it to deglaze the pan you used for sautéing the quail breasts and thighs. You can even puree the quail livers and hearts with butter and whisk the butter into the sauce at the last minute. Or, at the last minute, you can infuse the broth with a little finely chopped fresh chives or chervil and then whisk in a swirl of butter. Whatever your approach, keep the flavors simple, as the flavor of farm-raised quail is delicate.