Herb Rubbed Turkey with Apple Cider Gravy

Those of you who follow us on Facebook probably saw Antoinette's gorgeous baby girl today... WOW! What a sweet pea she is! Antoinette will be taking a bit of a break while she and her precious girl rest, recover and snuggle... when she needs a break from snuggling, I'm totally prepared to jump in and take one for the team (hint, hint!) In the mean time, I'll be posting recipes about once a week. More if I can.

Here's the last one in my Thanksgiving gear-up selection. I made a herb-rubbed turkey breast to go with the Sweet Potato Gratin and the Collard Greens Gratin with Prosciutto and Parmesan. I usually make my Thanksgiving turkey like this, and just the breast had great results too.


Herb Rubbed Turkey and Apple Cider Gravy
Serves 4
Preheat oven to 325

1 bone-in turkey breast - about 3 pounds
1/2 cup loosely packed fresh sage leafs
1/2 cup loosely packed fresh parsley
2 tablespoons fresh time
1/4 cup softened butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and Pepper

In a food processor or blender (or Magic Bullet!) blend the softened butter, herbs, olive oil and salt and pepper until a thick paste is formed. Just like making pesto.

Using your hands, shove the herb paste beneath the turkey skin, and massage all over the top of the skin and exposed bone. Get all up in there. It's gross, but it works. 

In a large baking dish, bake the breast at 325 degrees for about 1 hour, 45 minutes, or until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees. Baste once, and check the temperature at 1 hour 30 minutes. Move to a serving platter and tent with tin foil.

Apple Cider Gravy
Makes about 1 1/2 cups of gravy

Pan drippings
1/2 cup apple cider (or apple juice)
1 tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon softened butter

Carefully remove some of the fat from the pan drippings, leaving all the good turkey juice, just take out some of the fat. I usually skim the top with a large spoon. 

In a small dish, blend the softened butter and flour until a thick paste forms. Heat the pan drippings over low heat and stir in the flour/butter paste. Whisk until smooth and cook until thickened, about 2 minutes.

(This is the same technique used in the Coq au Vin recipe, and it really makes a nice gravy.)

Serve hot over turkey breast and anything else delicious!

A few things about this recipe...
If you want to do a whole turkey with this herb rub, just double or triple the quantities depending on the size of your bird.

This paste is really adaptable - swap our the sage for rosemary. Add some garlic. Marjoram, awesome. Cilantro and lime? I might try that! It just makes a great herby rub.

Almost made this time last year, but a great party starter for Thanksgiving!
Spiced Nuts and Bourbon Cocktails

Asian Meatballs

When people think “meatball”, they often think Italian.  However, meatballs can be transformed many different ways.  This recipe was one of my pins on Pinterest.  I modified it but overall, it was great as is.  I almost always use turkey whenever ground meat is required: tacos, spaghetti, etc.  Turkey works well for this recipe because there are so many amazing Asian flavors that you don’t need the extra flavor you would get from the fat in beef. 

These meatballs use the typical egg and breadcrumbs for binding agents.  But the Asian-style is brought out with the use of ginger, toasted sesame oil, and green onions.  The original recipe calls for regular sesame oil but the toasted sesame oil, I feel, give the meatballs a stronger nutty flavor which I love.  Each of the meatballs is then dunked in an Asian sauce, which is pungent and salty due to the hoisin and soy.  I muted the saltiness with a bit of honey.  To balance the sauce, I served the saucy meatballs over coconut rice.  Coconut rice has a milky texture and is slightly sweet so it is really the perfect accompaniment.  You can also serve the meatballs individually as an appetizer.

Asian Meatballs

Ingredients:

1 lb ground turkey

1 tsp toasted sesame oil

½ c breadcrumbs

¼ tsp ground ginger

1 egg

1 ½ tsp minced garlic

½ tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

¼ tsp crushed red pepper

¼ c thinly sliced green onions, plus more for garnish

sesame seeds for garnish (optional)

Sauce:

2/3 c hoisin sauce

¼ c rice vinegar

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 tbsp soy sauce

1 tsp toasted sesame oil

1 tsp ground ginger

1 tbsp honey

Preheat oven to 400F.  In a large bowl combine ground turkey, sesame oil, breadcrumbs, ground ginger, egg, garlic, salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper.  Use your hands to combine ingredients.  Refrigerate until ready to cook.

Kitchen tool: Dig in!  Use your hands.  It’s the best kitchen tool you’ll ever have :)

Shape into balls and place on a greased 13x9 baking dish or a baking sheet.  Bake for 10-12 minutes or until a digital read thermometer reads at least 165F.

Tip: Spray your hands with cooking spray before shaping the meatballs.  It prevents the meat from sticking.

While meatballs are baking, combine all sauce ingredients and whisk together. 

Remove meatballs from oven and allow to cool for about 5 minutes.  Using a toothpick, dip each meatball into the sauce and place on a serving dish.  Top with green onions and sesame seeds.

Makes ~15 meatballs (approximately 1 - 1 1/2" diameter)

Turkey Sausage and Spinach Stuffed Shells

Okay so I don’t know about you guys but I am officially ADDICTED to Pinterest!  I have found so many recipes I want to try and I have to be careful when I visit because it’s easily a 2-3 hour endeavor.  It’s so fun finding cute crafts (especially DIY), great cooking ideas, and even better entertaining possibilities.  One of the recipes I was dying to try was from a blog called Inspired Taste.  It looks like a really cool blog that was started by a couple who is really into cooking and photography.  I’ll have to add that one to the reading list. 

Stuffed shells are very versatile.  You can stuff shells with just about anything.  I have another recipe for shrimp stuffed shells that I’ll have to post at a later date.  I slightly modified the original recipe from Inspired Taste because I prefer to not have pork when there is a near equal substitute.  Sausage is one of those things.  I never buy pork sausage anymore.  There are so many great chicken and turkey sausages out there that are healthier and often times, even taste better.  Other than that, I added a couple of different seasonings and onion, and (voila!) my own version of this great recipe steps on the scene. 

Stuffed Shells with Turkey Sausage and Spinach

Ingredients:

20 jumbo pasta shells

1 lb Italian turkey sausage links, casing removed

2 garlic cloves, minced

½ c chopped onion

1 (14.5oz) can diced tomatoes

1c frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry

½ c ricotta cheese

½ c shredded Italian cheese blend

1 tsp Italian seasoning

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

½ tsp crushed red pepper

Prep tip: Place thawed chopped spinach in between a couple layers of paper towels and wring out over the sink to dry.

Preheat oven to 350F.

Bring a large pot of water to boil and cook pasta shells according to package directions.  Once al dente, place shells in a bowl of very cold water until filling is prepared.

Tip: Soaking the shells in water stops the cooking process and also prevents them from drying out prior to baking.

Brown sausage in a large saucepan over medium-high heat.  Once sausage is near done, add onion and garlic.  Once all sausage is browned, add tomatoes, spinach, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper.  Stir until well mixed.  Remove from heat and stir in ricotta.

Fill pasta shells with sausage mixture and place in a shallow baking dish.  Sprinkle with shredded cheese.  Bake at 350F for 20-25 mins or until cheese and edges of shells start to brown.

I served these shells with a delicious spinach salad and roasted garlic bread.  When we sat down for dinner, we totally threw out the etiquette and ate these with our fingers.  It worked great!  Also, it gave me a great idea for a new twist on appetizers. 

When you make this recipe, don’t forget to post your pretty pictures on Instagram and use the #nopressurecooker.

Rosemary Turkey Meatloaf

Ground turkey is something that I always have in stock.  I use it in place of ground beef for almost everything.  Actually, I don’t think I’ve used ground beef in about 3 years!  Turkey is healthier because it has less saturated fat and less fat overall.  The difference is that you have to season it better than you would beef because fat = flavor.  That is also the reason why I never use ground turkey breast.  It is too lean for me and tastes more like cardboard (but that’s just my opinion). 

This rosemary turkey meatloaf is the best I have ever had!  Since I discovered this, it has been my staple and I honestly can’t see myself finding one I like better.  The turkey is complimented by fresh rosemary and balsamic vinegar as the secret ingredient.  I think the balsamic helps the turkey to stay moist.  When you try this meatloaf, you won’t think you’re eating turkey because it is incredibly moist and flavorful.  I’m a ground turkey converter!  If you like beef, BEWARE!

Rosemary Turkey Meatloaf

Ingredients:

1 lb ground turkey

1c dry garlic & herb bread crumbs

¼ onion, chopped

1 egg, beaten

¼ c milk

¼ c balsamic vinegar

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

1 ½ tbsp chopped fresh rosemary

BBQ sauce of your choice

Preheat oven to 350F.  Lightly spray a 9x5” loaf pan with cooking spray.

In a large mixing bowl, mix together all ingredients except BBQ sauce.  Press into prepared pan.  Pour BBQ sauce over top so that meatloaf is just covered.  Bake for 50-55 minutes or until temperature reaches 160F.  Let stand for 5-7 minutes before slicing and serving.

Hint: Use a digital meat thermometer!  Works every time!  Also, it’s important with turkey because it dries out quickly.

I served this with rice and sautéed cabbage with onions and sundried tomatoes.  It made for a perfect winter meal that was healthy and delicious.  

Meatloaf is one of the easiest dishes to make.  You throw all of the ingredients in a bowl and then use your hands to mix it all together.  Then, you just throw it in the pan.  It's perfect for a weeknight meal and also great to do with kids because they can help mix the ingredients and get their hands all messy.  They'll love it!  

Green Chili Turkey Burgers

It's 100 degrees in Portland. I do not want to turn on the oven! Our little house cooks in this kind of weather and adding another 300 degrees just isn't gonna happen. So, it's BBQ time! We made green chili turkey burgers, these were not spicy, but really flavorful, tender and juicy. We ate them covered in grilled onions and guacamole with watermelon slices on the side. Awesome 100 degree solution. 

Green Chili Turkey Burgers

1 lb ground turkey
1 small (4oz) can of mild chopped green chilies
1/2 cup shredded pepper jack cheese
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 egg
 pinch of salt

With your hands, mix together the ground meat, chilies, cheese, bread crumbs, egg and salt. Form into four patties* and let the meat rest for 10 minutes or so while the grill heats up and you sort out your fixings. 

Grill until internal temperature of the patties reaches 160 degrees. (Don't be like us and leave the metal thermometer in a patty while you reach for a spatula and then grab the thermometer burning your tender fingers. If you do happen to do this, we suggest ice cold water for your fingers and ice cold beer for the rest of your damaged self.)

*I once read on the Internets that if you make an indentation in the middle of your burger patty they will cook up flat rather than like over-inflated footballs. It works! It works!

A few things about this recipe...

We made similar burgers the next night using beef as we were out of turkey... I liked the turkey better, but the beef was good too. Use what you like. And, since we put cheese in the patties, we didn't put more cheese on the burgers, however, more cheese is almost always better, so more cheese would be worth thinking about. :) 

If it's not 100 degrees, or if you're blessed with AC and feel like turning on the oven, I think this would make a great turkey meatloaf rather than grilled burgers. The egg and breadcrumbs keep everything together nicely and the chilies and cheese keep everything juicy.