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Stuffed Turkey Breast w/mushrooms & cranberries
Prep: 30 minutes
Cook: 1 hou
Serves: 4
Even if you end up not eating the skin, it's important to wrap it around the turkey roll for roasting. It will bathe the turkey in flavor and will keep the breast from drying out.
INGREDIENTS
1 boneless turkey breast (about 2 lbs)
Butter, olive oil, OR bacon fat
Salt
1/4 cup crimini mushrooms chopped
1 thick slice of bacon*
1/4 cup minced shallot
2 Tbsp chopped dried cranberries
1 teaspoon minced sage
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1 tablespoons chopped parsley
3 Tbsp turkey or chicken stock (can sub water)
1 tablespoon flour
1 cup turkey or chicken stock
Salt and pepper
Poultry seasoning
*If you don't eat bacon, you can skip, just use a generous tablespoon of butter instead, to sauté the shallots.
METHOD:
Slowly cook the bacon in a medium frying pan on medium heat until crispy. Remove the bacon to a paper-towel lined plate. Once cool enough to touch, chop. You should have at least a tablespoon of fat in the pan. (If not, add butter or olive oil to make up the difference.) Heat the same pan on medium (do not drain the fat rendered out of the bacon), add the minced shallots and cook until the shallots begin to brown. Add the chopped dried cranberries, minced sage and chopped mushrooms. Stir well and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the breadcrumbs, the parsley, chopped bacon, and the turkey or chicken stock and stir well. You want a rough paste, something that will stick to itself. Remove from the heat and allow the stuffing to cool.
3 To make the stuffed turkey breast, remove the skin from the turkey in one piece and reserve. Put the turkey breast between two pieces of wax paper or plastic wrap and gently pound with a mallet until it is about 1/4 inch thick. (It may be easier to butterfly the breast first, depending on how big the breast is.)
4 Trim the pounded breast until it is roughly a rectangle. Spread a thin layer of the stuffing over the breast, leaving about 3/4 inch border around all sides. Tightly roll the breast lengthwise. Lay the skin over the top of the rolled breast and tuck any under the edges.
5 Tie the rolled turkey breast tightly with kitchen string and set it on a roasting pan. Paint it with olive oil, or smear butter or bacon fat over it and sprinkle with salt.
6 Roast at 400° for 20 minutes, then drop the heat to 325° and roast for another 10-15 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the breast reads about 155° on a meat thermometer.
7 Once the turkey reaches that temperature remove it from the roasting pan and tent it loosely with foil. Let it rest at least 10 minutes, and up to 25 minutes.
8 While the turkey breast is resting, if you want, you may be able to make a little gravy with the drippings. If you are only cooking the breast, and not the optional turkey wing as well, you may not have much to work with. But even a little bit of drippings can flavor a gravy. (If you really don't have much fat to work with, you can melt two tablespoons of butter into the roasting pan.) Take the roasting pan with drippings and place over two burners on the stove-top on medium . Sprinkle with flour and stir until the flour is incorporated into the drippings. Slowly add stock, whisking constantly, until smooth. Season with salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning or ground sage or thyme. Let simmer on the stove until thickened to your preference.
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Roasted Squash & Apple Soup
INGREDIENTS:
4 pounds whole butternut squash (about 2 medium), halved lengthwise and seeds removed
2 tablespoons unsalted butter (1/4 stick)
1 medium Granny Smith apple (about 8 ounces)
1/2 medium yellow onion
8 fresh sage leaves
2 1/2 cups low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
2 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more as needed
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more as needed
1/3 cup heavy cream
INSTRUCTIONS:
Heat the oven to 425°F and arrange a rack in the middle.
Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place the squash pieces cut-side up on the baking sheet. Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter and brush all of it over the tops and insides of the squash halves (alternatively, you can rub it on evenly with your fingers). Season generously with salt and pepper. Roast until knife tender, about 50 minutes to 1 hour.
Meanwhile, peel, core, and cut the apple into medium dice. Cut the onion into medium dice. Melt the remaining tablespoon of butter in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the apple, onion, and sage, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 7 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and set aside.
When the squash is ready, set the baking sheet on a wire rack until the squash is cool enough to handle. Using a large spoon, scoop the flesh into the saucepan with the sautéed apples and onions; discard the skins.
Add the broth, water, and measured salt and pepper, stir to combine, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer, stirring occasionally and breaking up any large pieces of squash, until the flavors meld, about 15 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cream.
Using a blender, purée the soup in batches until smooth, removing the small cap from the blender lid (the pour lid) and covering the space with a kitchen towel (this allows steam to escape and prevents the lid from popping off). Alternatively, use an immersion blender. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.
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Serves: 4
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups chopped dried cranberries
1 cup chopped red apple
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup seedless green grapes, halved
1/3 cup raisins
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
2 Tbsp Orange Juice
1 Tbsp Lemon Juice
1 Tbsp Honey
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup of low-fat plain yogurt
Directions:
In a medium bowl, combine cranberries, apple, celery, grapes, raisins, walnuts, honey, orange and Lemon Juice, cinnamon, and yogurt. (I chop cranberries in a food processor, and it works great). Toss to coat. Cover, and chill 2 hours. Stir just before serving.
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Pumpkin Tiramisu
Ingredients:
1/2 cup heavy cream, very cold
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup mascarpone cheese
3/4 cup pumpkin purée
heaping 1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
8 ladyfingers, halved crosswise
2 shots espresso (about 3 ounces)
1 teaspoon rum or Frangelico (optional)
4-5 amaretti cookies, crushed
Directions:
Combine heavy cream and sugar in a medium bowl. Beat mixture with a hand mixer, gradually increasing speed from low to medium-high, until stiff peaks form. Add mascarpone, pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice and continue beating until mixture is smooth. Set aside.
If using rum, mix into espresso. Quickly dunk four ladyfinger halves into the espresso mixture, placing two halves each into two small glasses. Top each with a small amount (about 1/6) of filling. Repeat process twice more, using three ladyfinger halves each time, to end up with three layers of ladyfingers and three layers of filling. Cover and refrigerate overnight. When ready to serve, top each tiramisu with crushed amaretti and serve immediately.
Makes 2 generous servings
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Enjoy!
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