Sweet Sausage Sage And Hazelnut Stuffed Turkey Breast Recipes

SWEET SAUSAGE, SAGE, AND HAZELNUT-STUFFED TURKEY BREAST

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Place bread cubes on a baking sheet. Transfer to oven and cook until toasted and golden. Remove from oven and transfer to a large bowl. Add crushed hazelnuts, sausage, and sage; season with salt and pepper. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil and, using your hands, mix stuffing until well combined.
• Place one turkey breast half flat on work surface; holding the blade of the knife parallel to the board, slice along the length of the breast, but not all the way through, starting with the thickest portion. Unfold so the turkey opens like a book. Spread half of the stuffing mixture on breast half and fold to enclose like a sandwich. Tie with kitchen twine to secure. Repeat process with remaining turkey breast half and stuffing.
• Coat the bottom of a roasting pan with 1 tablespoon olive oil and add 2 whole sage leaves. Place stuffed turkey breast halves in a roasting pan; drizzle with remaining tablespoon olive oil, top with remaining 2 whole sage leaves, and season with salt and pepper. Transfer to oven and roast until internal temperature of breast reaches 165 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, 1 to 1 hour and 10 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

TURKEY BREAST STUFFED WITH ITALIAN SAUSAGE AND MARSALA-STEEPED CRANBERRIES

Steps:

• Put the cranberries and Marsala into a small saucepan and bring to a boil, then take off the heat and leave to one side.
• Put the oil into a large frying pan or similar heavy pan, and fry the shallots for a minute or so, then add the spices and chopped sage, turning them in the soft shallots.
• Squeeze the sausage meat out of its skins, add to the pan, and break it up-using a wooden fork and spatula for ease-turning it in the hot pan until it loses its pinkness. This will take about 5 minutes.
• Take the frying pan off the heat and turn the contents into a large bowl, mixing in the steeped cranberries and any Marsala clinging to them, and leave to cool. You can cover with plastic wrap and put in the refrigerator for up to 2 days at this stage. When you are ready to stuff the turkey breast, take the bowl of sausage meat out of the refrigerator.
• Preheat the oven to 400°F.
• Uncover the bowl of sausage meat, add the eggs, Parmesan, and bread crumbs and-I use my hands for this-mix well. Lay the butterflied turkey joint out in front of you. It really does look like a butterfly, though admittedly a fleshy one. Spread the stuffing out first in the slight cavity in the center of the butterfly and then outward onto the wings though not going right up to the edge (or it will squidge out when cooking) but as evenly as possible over the whole joint.
• Carefully, in one swift but steady movement, fold one "wing" over the other to close the joint, and then sit the turkey in a large roasting pan, breast bone (or where the breast bone would be) on top as it would look were it the whole bird, with the pointier bit farthest away from you. Thread 2 skewers through the base-i.e., the widest part that is nearer you-to keep it closed, and smear it all over with the duck or goose fat.
• Roast the turkey breast for 2-2 1/2 hours, then check it is cooked with a turkey or meat thermometer. When cooked, it should read 165°F in the center. (If you're leaving it to rest, as you should, or to cool, you could take it out at 160°F-it will retain heat and continue to cook for a short while once out of the oven.)
• Flex your muscles, then lift out onto a cutting board, and leave to rest for at least 20 minutes. Or leave to get cold if you are eating it as part of a cook-ahead buffet.
• Cut through the whole joint in wide slices right across; they will need to be quite thick, at least 1/2 inch, maybe 1 inch, to keep the stuffing intact within the slice.
• As you place it on table or sideboard, dot around it the condiments of your choice: I revert to Christmas in Italy here by putting a lusciously extravagant pot or two of Italian mostarda di Cremona on the table alongside: this is a hot and sweet preserve of mustardy candied fruits that gleam beautifully and taste both festive and fabulous.

CIDER-BRAISED TURKEY LEGS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
• Rinse and dry turkey legs; season on all sides with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Place bacon in a large Dutch oven and cook, stirring occasionally, over medium heat until bacon begins to crisp, 3 to 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to a paper towel-lined plate and set aside.
• Increase heat to high and add olive oil. Add turkey legs, skin side down, working in batches if necessary. Cook, turning, until turkey is browned on all sides, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer legs to a plate and discard all but 1 tablespoon of rendered fat from Dutch oven.
• Add carrots, celery, and leeks to Dutch oven and cook, stirring, until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add brown sugar and cook until it begins to bubble. Add thyme, sage, bay leaves, and cider; bring to a boil and stir, breaking up any browned bits at the bottom of pan. Continue boiling until cider is reduced by half, about 5 minutes.
• Add chicken stock and bring to a boil; reduce heat to a slow simmer and add reserved bacon. Return turkey legs to Dutch-oven, skin side down; cover and transfer to oven. Cook for 40 minutes, turn turkey legs, uncover, and continue cooking until legs are tender, 45 to 50 minutes more.
• Transfer turkey legs to a serving platter. Skim fat from top of braising liquid and discard; season braising liquid with salt and pepper and spoon over turkey legs. Serve.

TURKEY BREAST STUFFED WITH SAUSAGE, FENNEL, AND GOLDEN RAISINS

Steps:

• Finely chop white part of onions. Place green parts side by side on 15x10x1-inch heavy rimmed baking sheet to form mat. Mix chopped onions, sausage, raisins, 1 1/2 teaspoons fennel, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in medium bowl.
• Place turkey on work surface, skin side down. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Spoon sausage mixture in row between breast halves. Starting at 1 long side, roll up turkey breast to enclose filling. Tie with kitchen string at 1-inch intervals to hold shape. Place turkey atop onion mat. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; chill.)
• Preheat oven to 400°F. Brush oil all over turkey. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and 2 teaspoons fennel. Roast until thermometer inserted into filling registers 155°F, basting turkey every 15 minutes with 1/4 cup broth and adding more broth to pan if drippings burn, about 1 hour 20 minutes. Transfer to platter; let stand 5 minutes. Set baking sheet with onions atop 2 burners. Add 1 cup broth to baking sheet. Bring to boil over medium-high heat, scraping up browned bits. Boil 2 minutes. Strain pan juices into medium bowl; discard solids. Serve turkey with pan juices.