Turkey Thighs With Pickled Cranberries And Onions For Two Recipes

ROAST TURKEY THIGHS FOR TWO

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• Lightly drizzle a small amount of oil on the bottom of the pan.
• Spread the sliced onions into a layer on the bottom of the pan.
• Season the turkey thighs on each side with salt, pepper and poultry seasoning to taste (the poultry seasoning is strong so use a light hand with this).
• Cut each pat of butter into smaller cubes and place them on various spots all over the skin on each turkey thigh.
• Place the turkey thighs, skin side up, on top of the onions.
• Roast for 50 minutes-1 hour until they reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees.
• Remove them from the oven and let them rest in a foil tent for 10 minutes. Serve immediately.

TURKEY THIGHS WITH PICKLED CRANBERRIES AND ONIONS FOR TWO

Steps:

• Finely grate 1/2 teaspoon zest from the lemon and put it in a small bowl with the garlic and thyme. Halve the lemon and squeeze 1 tablespoon of the juice into the bowl. Mix everything into a paste.
• Pat the turkey thighs dry and season with salt and pepper. Smear turkey with the paste and place thighs on a plate. Refrigerate, uncovered, so the skin can dry out, for at least 2 hours and up to 2 days.
• Meanwhile, squeeze the remaining juice from the lemon halves into a medium bowl. Add the onion, cranberries, lime juice, sugar and 1/4 teaspoon salt, tossing well. Let the mixture sit at room temperature, tossing occasionally, until the onions wilt and turn pink, 1 hour. Cover and refrigerate until serving. (These can be made up to 3 days in advance.)
• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Put turkey thighs on a baking pan and dot with butter. Roast the thighs for 40 to 50 minutes, until the skin is crisp, the meat is cooked through and the juices run clear. (No need to rest here.)
• Serve turkey with a little of the cranberries and pickles on top, with herbs scattered over everything.

ROSEMARY AND CITRUS TURKEY FOR A CROWD

Steps:

• Remove giblets from inside the turkey; reserve for stock or gravy. Pat meat dry with paper towels. In a small bowl, stir together salt, pepper, allspice, garlic and citrus zests. Pat mixture all over turkey and turkey parts (including inside the whole turkey cavity). Stuff one bunch of rosemary in cavity of whole turkey. Strew remaining rosemary and the thyme all over turkey and turkey parts. Refrigerate, uncovered, overnight.
• Remove whole turkey from the refrigerator 1 hour before you plan to cook it so it can come to room temperature. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Arrange oven racks so the pan with the whole turkey will fit on top rack, and the two pans with parts will fit underneath.
• Place whole turkey (with herb branches clinging to it) on a rack in a roasting pan. Take parts out of the fridge and place the breasts in a 9-by-13-inch roasting pan. Place the legs and wings in a separate 9-by-13 roasting pan.
• Distribute onions, carrots, celery and apples into all three pans, scattering them on the bottom of the large roasting pan under the whole turkey, and tucking them in among turkey pieces. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons wine over each pan of turkey parts and pour 1/2 cup wine in the bottom of the whole turkey pan.
• Transfer whole turkey to the oven and roast for 1 hour (let the parts come to room temperature while the turkey starts roasting).
• Add parts to the oven underneath the rack with the whole turkey on it, and roast for an additional 30 minutes.
• Squeeze the juice from the 2 zested oranges. Increase oven temperature to 450 degrees and sprinkle about a third of the orange juice into the bottom of each of the three pans.
• Drizzle the butter or oil all over the whole turkey and the pieces. Continue roasting until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the meat registers 165 degrees, about 20 to 30 minutes more for the whole turkey, and 15 to 45 minutes longer for the parts. (Note: The turkey breasts may cook faster than the dark meat, so keep your eye on them.) If the breast of the whole turkey starts to look too brown before the bird is cooked through, cover it loosely with foil.
• When the whole turkey is cooked through, remove from oven, cover with foil and let rest for 20 minutes while the parts finish cooking.
• When all the turkey parts are cooked through, adjust oven temperature to broil. Broil turkey parts until skin turns golden brown and crisp, 3 to 5 minutes. Let parts rest for 5 minutes before carving and serving. If you want to use the drippings for gravy or stock, strain or use a slotted spoon to remove vegetables first.

SLOW COOKER CRANBERRY TURKEY BREAST

Steps:

• Place the cranberry sauce in a bowl, and mash. Mix in the onion soup mix and orange juice together until the mixture is well combined.
• Spray the inside of a slow cooker with cooking spray, and place the turkey breast into the cooker. Pour the sauce ingredients over the turkey breast. Set the cooker on Low, and cook until the turkey breast is very tender, about 7 hours.

ROAST TURKEY WITH BERRY-MINT SAUCE AND BLACK WALNUTS

Steps:

• Remove giblets from the turkey cavity and discard or reserve for another use. Pat the turkey dry using paper towels. Rub the turkey all over with 1/2 teaspoon salt per pound of turkey. Tuck the sage sprigs inside the turkey cavity.
• Set the turkey on a baking sheet, breast-side up. Place in the refrigerator, uncovered, for at least 4 hours and up to 6 hours to dry out the skin (this will help it crisp when it roasts).
• When you are ready to cook the turkey, remove it from the refrigerator and allow it to come to room temperature, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
• Heat the oven to 450 degrees. Pour the rice cooking liquid or stock into a large roasting pan and add the leeks. Place a roasting rack on top, then transfer the turkey to the roasting rack, breast-side up, and tuck the wings underneath. Brush the exposed turkey generously with the oil. Transfer to the oven and roast, 30 minutes. Baste the turkey with the pan juices, adding rice cooking liquid or stock as needed to make sure there is a 1/2-inch layer of liquid at the bottom of the pan.
• Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees and continue roasting, basting every 30 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of a thigh reaches 165 degrees, 1 to 1 1/2 hours. If the skin begins to darken too much, tent the turkey loosely with aluminum foil. Brush 1/4 cup maple syrup over the turkey. Transfer turkey to a cutting board to rest for 30 minutes before carving.
• Transfer 3/4 cup of the turkey pan juices to a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Add the raspberries or blackberries, cranberries and the mint to the saucepan, stir with a wooden spoon to combine, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until the cranberries have popped open, the raspberries have fallen apart and the liquid is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, 10 to 12 minutes. Stir in the remaining 1/4 cup maple syrup, then add maple syrup and mint according to taste.
• Carve the turkey. Smear some berry sauce on each plate. Top with the leeks then the turkey. Garnish with walnuts and pea shoots or microgreens, and pass more berry sauce alongside.