Instructions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Melt 1/2 cup butter in large skillet. Add onion, celery, shallots, red and green pepper, garlic and bay leaves and saute 5 minutes.

Cut up oysters, reserve liquid. Stir oysters into skillet with 1/2 teaspoon thyme, oregano and 1/2 teaspoon Tabasco sauce; simmer 5 minutes longer. Remove bay leaves. Add rice and oyster liquid.

Wash Cornish hens; pat dry. Stuff cavity of each hen with rice stuffing. (Remaining stuffing can be baked in covered dish during last half hour of roasting time). Arrange hens on rack in shallow roasting pan. Melt remaining 1/4 cup butter; stir in salt, remaining 1/4 teaspoon thyme and 1/4 teaspoon Tabasco sauce. Brush hens with butter mixture. Bake 1 1/2 hours, basting often with pan drippings.

To serve, spoon extra stuffing on serving platter; arrange hens on stuffing.

To make gravy, pour excess fat from roasting pan; add flour to pan and stir. Place pan on stove top burner over medium heat, gradually add broth scraping up bits from bottom of pan. Stir until mixture thickens and boils. Serve with hens.

This recipe yields 6 servings.

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