Thanksgiving Recipes

Since Thanksgiving here in the U.S. is less than two weeks away, I'm ending the week with six Thanksgiving recipes. Check out the Turkey Breast Roulade With Garlic and Rosemary, the Harvest Stuffing Bread, and the rest of today's offerings. Enjoy!

NEW ENGLAND ROAST TURKEY

This recipe is from Yankee Magazine and adapted by Sam Sifton in The New York Times cooking enewsletter. For this recipe, Sam wrote, "This adaptation of an old Yankee Magazine recipe for classic New England roast turkey is solid and unfancy, the sort that has adorned tables from Portsmouth north for generations. Old-line New Englanders may be tempted to soak an old cotton button-down dress shirt in butter and drape it over the bird for the first two hours. But this is not necessary." (Yup, not sure about you, but I'll forgo draping the bird with the buttered shirt!)

Total Time: 4-1/2 hours, plus brining; Yield: 12 or more servings

This was featured in "The United States of Thanksgiving", and can be found online at https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1016933-new-england-roast-turkey.

One last No way I'm soaking "an old button-down dress shirt in buter and drap(ing) it over the bird" at all! (Shakes head in disbelief...)

Ingredients

1 12- to 14-pound turkey

2-1/4 cups kosher salt, more as needed

1 cup white sugar

3 bay leaves

1 tablespoon black peppercorns, cracked, more as needed

3 sprigs each fresh rosemary, thyme and sage

1 large yellow onion, peeled and quartered

2 ribs of celery, roughly chopped

2 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped

Preparation

Rinse turkey under cold water and place on a rack in its roasting pan while you make the brine.

For the brine, combine salt, sugar, bay leaves, pepper and herbs with 2-1/2 gallons water in a pot or cooler large enough to hold turkey comfortably. Stir until salt and sugar dissolve. Put turkey in brine and refrigerate or ice overnight, at least 12 hours.

When ready to cook, heat oven to 425 degrees. Remove bird from brine, drain well and pat very dry with paper towels. Discard brine. Set turkey, breast side up, on a roasting rack set into a large roasting pan. Season with salt and pepper, then fill the cavity with onion, celery and carrots. Fold wings under the bird and tie its legs together with butcher’s twine. Roast for 30 minutes.

Reduce heat to 350 degrees and roast approximately 3 hours more, basting bird every 30 minutes with drippings and tenting it with foil if skin is turning too dark, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh without touching bone registers 165 degrees. Transfer to a cutting board or platter and allow to rest at least 30 minutes before carving.

TURKEY BREAST ROULADE WITH GARLIC AND ROSMARY

This recipe is by Ina Garten and adapted by Julia Moskin in The New York Times cooking e-newsletter. Julia wrote, "Ina Garten has been known as the Barefoot Contessa since she opened a gourmet store by that name in East Hampton, N.Y., in 1985. She shared this recipe from her book “Modern Comfort Food” with The Times for Thanksgiving in 2020, when many cooks were looking for alternatives to whole turkey. If you don’t like fennel seeds, leave them out: Garlic, sage and rosemary give this roast the flavors of Italian porchetta, and it will still be fragrant, juicy and delicious without them."

Time: 3 hours; Yield: 8 to 10 servings

This yummy recipe (and aren't most of Ina's recipes yummy?) was featured in "How Does Ina Do It?", and can be viewed online at https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1021643-turkey-breast-roulade-with-garlic-and-rosemary.

Ingredients

4 tablespoons good-quality olive oil

1 large yellow onion, chopped (about 1-1/2 cups)

3/4 teaspoon whole fennel seeds

6 garlic cloves, minced (about 2 tablespoons)

1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage leaves, plus 4 whole sage leaves

1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary leaves

1 whole butterflied boneless, skin-on turkey breast (about 4 to 5 pounds)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup cold unsalted butter (1/2 stick)

4 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto

1 cup dry white wine, such as Chablis

Preparation

Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a medium (10-inch) skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and fennel seeds and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, tossing occasionally, until the onion is tender. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Off the heat, stir in the chopped sage and the rosemary; set aside to cool.

Set the turkey breast on a cutting board and open it up, skin side down. If necessary, pound the turkey to an even thickness of about 1 inch. Sprinkle the turkey with 4 teaspoons salt and 1-1/2 teaspoons pepper. Once the onion mixture has cooled, spread it evenly on the meat. Grate the butter and sprinkle it on top. Arrange the prosciutto on top to totally cover the filling and meat.

Starting at one long end of the turkey breast, roll the meat up jelly-roll style to make a compact cylindrical roulade, ending with the seam side down. Tie the roulade tightly with kitchen twine at 2 to 2-1/2-inch intervals to ensure that it will roast evenly. Slip the whole sage leaves under the twine down the center of the roulade.

Place the roulade, seam side down, in a roasting pan and pat the skin dry with paper towels. Brush the skin with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Pour the wine and 1 cup water into the roasting pan, surrounding the turkey with the liquids without pouring them directly over the roulade. Roast for 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 hours, until the skin is golden brown and the internal temperature is 150 degrees.

Remove from the oven, cover the turkey with foil, and allow to rest for 15 minutes. Remove the string, slice the roulade crosswise in 1/2-inch-thick slices, and serve warm with the pan juices.

HARVEST STUFFING BREAD

Years ago, Fr. Dominic Garramone (AKA the Bread Monk had a show on PBS. I'm sure I'm not the only person who got hooked on his show. Unfortunately, it has since gone off the air, at least where I live. But his cook books are still in circulation, and you can always go to his website (above).

Yield: 1 loaf.

Ingredients

1-1/4 cups warm water (100 to 110F)

1 envelope FLEISCHMANN'S Active Dry Yeast

1 tablespoon butter or margarine, softened

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon instant minced onions

1 tablespoon parsley flakes

1-1/2 teaspoons poultry seasoning

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 egg, beaten

1/2 teaspoon whole celery seed

Directions

Place 1/4 cup warm water in large bowl. Sprinkle in yeast; stir until dissolved. Add remaining warm water, butter, sugar, salt, 2 tablespoons onions, parsley flakes, poultry seasoning and 2 cups flour. Beat 2 minutes at medium speed of electric mixer, scraping bowl occasionally. Stir in remaining flour to make a stiff batter. Cover; place in warm, draft-free place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Stir batter down; turn into greased 1-1/2-quart casserole. Smooth top of batter in casserole with floured hands. Cover; let rise in warm, draft-free place until doubled in size, about 30 minutes. Brush beaten egg on loaf. Sprinkle with remaining onions and celery seed. Bake at 375F* for 35 minutes or until done. Remove from casserole; cool on wire rack.

* Bake at 350F if glass casserole is used.

ROASTED POTATOES AND ONIONS

This comes from allrecipes, and begins, "Roasted potatoes and onions are a tasty alternative to mashed potatoes, fries, chips, and all the other ways potatoes are prepared. If you are looking for an uncomplicated and flavorful roasted vegetable dish, then this is it!"

Prep Time: 15 minutes; Cook Time: 40 minutes; Total Time: 55 minutes; Servings: 6

To view this online, go to https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/241713/roasted-potatoes-and-onions-easy-and-delicious/.

Ingredients

2 pounds potatoes, sliced into 1/2-inch-thick pieces

1 onion, halved and each half cut into quarters

1/2 cup canola oil

1/2 cup olive oil

4 cloves garlic, chopped

1 envelope onion soup mix

1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary, or more to taste

1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Gather the ingredients.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).

Combine potatoes and onion in a roasting pan; cover with canola oil and olive oil. Add garlic, onion soup mix, rosemary, and black pepper; stir until potatoes and onion are evenly coated. Cover roasting pan with aluminum foil.

Roast in the preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil and continue to roast until potatoes and onion are browned and edges are crispy, 15 to 30 minutes.

Serve hot and enjoy!

Recipe Tips

For really crispy potatoes, remove the foil after 10 minutes. For softer potatoes, keep the foil on the entire cooking time. Softer potatoes can be whipped or mashed to make incredible mashed potatoes.

Sauté bell peppers on the stovetop for 10 minutes before serving them on top of roasted veggies.

Stir with a large spoon every 15 minutes if you don't want pieces seared to the pan.

CHEESECAKE-STUFFED PUMPKIN BREAD

This yumminess is from Betty Crocker, and begins, "This easy pumpkin and cake mix bread gets an eye-catching swirl when it’s stuffed with a creamy, cheesecake filling."

Toyal Time: 2 hours 25 minutes; Servings: 24

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

Pumpkin Bread

1 box Betty Crocker™ Super Moist™ Yellow Cake Mix

1 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix)

1/2 cup water

1/3 cup vegetable oil

4 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

4 eggs

Cheesecake Filling

6 oz (from 8-oz package) cream cheese, softened

1/3 cup sugar

3 tablespoons Gold Medal™ all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 egg

Directions

Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour bottoms only of two 8x4-inch loaf pans.

In large bowl, beat Pumpkin Bread ingredients with electric mixer on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour 1 1/2 cups batter in bottom of each pan; set remaining batter aside.

In medium bowl, beat Cheesecake Filling ingredients with electric mixer on medium speed until well mixed. Spoon cheesecake filling on top of batter in pans, dividing equally.

Top cheesecake filling with remaining batter, dividing equally between both pans and carefully spreading to cover filling.

Bake 48 to 53 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes. Run metal spatula around edge of loaves to loosen; remove from pans to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 1 hour.

Recipe Tips

Some cheesecake filling may bubble out the top of the bread during baking, which is normal.

Store leftover bread covered in refrigerator.

HONEY-GLAZED SWEET POTATOES

This is from the Mayo Clinic, and begins, "Instead of canned sweet potatoes and marshmallows, this recipe uses fresh sweet potatoes, brown sugar and honey." Serves 8

To view this online, go to https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/recipes/honey-glazed-sweet-potatoes/rcp-20049674.

Ingredients

1/4 cup water

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons honey

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 pounds sweet potatoes (about 4 large), peeled and cut into wedges

Cracked black pepper or chopped herb of choice (rosemary, sage or thyme), to taste

Directions

Heat the oven to 375 F. Lightly coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.

To make the sauce, in a small bowl add the water, brown sugar, honey and olive oil. Whisk until smooth.

Place a single layer of sweet potatoes in the baking dish. Pour the sauce over the sweet potatoes. Turn to coat them.

Cover and bake until tender, about 45 minutes. Turn the sweet potatoes once or twice to continue coating them. When tender, remove the cover and continue to bake until the glaze is set, about 15 minutes.

Transfer to a serving dish and top with pepper or chopped herb of choice. Serve immediately.