Big Sur Bakery Cookbook - Michelle Wojtowicz [67]
Roast the turkey breast for 30 minutes. Then turn the oven temperature down to 375ºF and continue to cook the turkey until its internal temperature is 165ºF. (Use a meat thermometer to take the turkey’s temperature, inserting it slightly off-center and not touching the bone.) This will take approximately 1 hour (10 to 12 minutes per pound).
Remove the roasting pan from the oven and allow the breast to rest for 20 minutes before carving it. (While roasting at high heat, the liquid in the meat will have traveled toward its surface. This cooling time allows the juice to be absorbed back into the meat, and helps ensure that it will stay moist.) Carve into ¼-inch-thick slices at the table, and serve.
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Turkey Legs Stuffed with Long-Cooked Greens
We use long-cooked greens to stuff our turkey legs—the onion and garlic add a great flavor to the meat—but you can also serve them on their own. Our greens recipe pays homage to Southern cooking; it’s a simple comfort food with only a few ingredients and no fancy knife skills required. We use big onion slices, whole garlic cloves, hot red pepper flakes for heat, and sturdy greens like escarole, chard, beet greens, collards, or frisée. Mix and match your own, grab a glass of wine, and let them cook. This recipe isn’t about being in a rush.
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INGREDIENTS
FOR THE LONG-COOKED GREENS:
3 pounds assorted greens, such as beet greens, escarole, chard, collards, and/or frisée
¼ cup olive oil
10 small yellow onions, cut into ¼-inch-thick slices
10 garlic cloves
1 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes
¼ cup red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons kosher salt, plus extra if needed
FOR THE STUFFED TURKEY LEGS:
6 turkey legs, deboned and butterflied
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons rice bran oil or canola oil
3 cups turkey stock or chicken stock
Serves 10
Prepare the long-cooked greens first: Wash the greens, but don’t run them through a salad spinner. Leaving them slightly wet will help add moisture while they’re cooking.
Heat a large pot over low heat. Add the olive oil, onions, garlic, and red pepper flakes, and cover with a lid. Cook for 12 minutes, until the onions are translucent. Pour in the red wine vinegar, toss in the damp greens, and sprinkle with the salt.
Cook the greens over very low heat, covered, stirring them occasionally, for 45 minutes to 1 hour. You’re not in a rush—the slow cooking allows the greens’ complex flavors to develop. The greens are finished when they’re tender to the bite and have a deep dark green color. Check the seasoning and add more salt if needed. Transfer the greens to a dish and let them cool.
Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 350ºF.
Spread the turkey legs on a flat surface and put ½ cup of the long-cooked greens in the center of each leg. Roll each leg up and tie it with butcher’s twine. Season the skin lightly with salt and pepper. Save the remaining greens to serve as a side dish.
Heat a large cast-iron skillet over high heat and drizzle the oil into it. Put the legs in the pan and sear the skin until golden, about 5 minutes. Flip them over and sear the other side as well, about 5 minutes. Place the legs in a roasting pan, and add the stock. Braise in the oven for about 1 hour, until the meat is tender and cooked through.
Remove the legs from the roasting pan and let them sit for 10 minutes. Then slice the legs into medallions and serve, accompanied by the remaining long-cooked greens.
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Big Sur Bakery Mushroom Stuffing
This is the best stuffing, hands down. What’s more, it’s so easy that Phil’s sister Christine has time to make it each year for Thanksgiving, even with three kids under the age of five. So no more excuses about not making your stuffing from scratch!
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INGREDIENTS
2 loaves Pullman bread (or dense white sandwich bread)
9 tablespoons