I brined a bone-in fresh turkey breast in a honey solution overnight. The result was a nice, moist and tender turkey. The drippings made an awesome gravy that went well with the sage dressing.
Although I made the sweet potatoes on the grill, they can also be made indoors. The more you can cook on the grill the better. If nothing else, it frees up room in the oven!
The cranberry salad was awesome, as were the roasted Brussel sprouts.
Turkey Breast
Prep time: 24 hours
Makes: 6 serving from a 6 pound breast
Cook time: 2 hours
Printable Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1 6-pound bone-in, fresh natural turkey breast
- 4-5 quarts of water
- 1 cup kosher salt
- 1 cup honey
- 3-4 t black pepper
- 5-6 garlic gloves, peeled
- 1 small bunch fresh thyme, or about 1 T dried
- 1 small bunch fresh sage, or about 1 T dried
- 3 cups chicken stock
1. Rinse turkey breast with cold water and drain well. Blot dry.
2. In a large food-safe baggie (they sell really big ones that work great for turkeys), combine the water, honey and salt. Stir until the honey dissolves.
3. Add remaining ingredients except the turkey.
4. Place the baggie in a large pot. Make sure that the turkey is completely immersed. If needed, add more water.
5. Seal the bag and refrigerate for at least 12 hours.
For roasting:
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 1/2 cup butter
- 2 T mayonnaise
- salt
1. Pre-heat oven to 325. Remove turkey from brine and pat dry. Place turkey breast side up on a rack in a shallow roasting pan.
2. Melt the butter in a pan. Add the chicken stock and stir. Remove from heat and pour over turkey.
3. Rub mayonnaise over turkey breast and salt lightly if desired.
4. Roast until internal temp in thick part of breast reaches 170. Usually a breast takes 15-20 minutes per pound.
5. Remove from oven and let rest for 30 minutes before carving.
Note: For crisper skin, raise the temperature to 350 for the last 30-45 minutes of cooking
To make the gravy, take the drippings and add to a pan on the stove. Bring to a simmer, stirring. Mix 1/4 cup warm water with 1 t corn starch and mix into gravy mixture, stirring. Repeat until gravy is the desired consistency.
Dressing
This is based on a Betty Crocker recipe I found. It came out fantastic. You can use it as a stuffing if you are cooking a full bird. Since we just roasted a breast, we made this on the side.
Makes: 6 servings
Prep time: 15 minutes (see note)
Cook time: 1 hour
Ingredients:
- 12 cups bread, cubed (see note)
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 3/4 cup onion, minced
- 1 1/2 cup celery, chopped
- 1 cup mushrooms, chopped
- 1 T salt
- 1 t pepper
- 1 T ground sage
- 2-3 cups chicken stock
Note: The bread needs to be day old, and slightly crusty. If yours is not, you can sit it out overnight, or place the cubes on baking trays and place in a warm oven until crusty. Do not overcook.
1. Preheat oven to 350.
1. In a large skillet over medium heat melt the butter, then saute the onion, celery and mushroom until the onion is soft.
2. Add the salt, pepper and sage and cook 3 minutes.
3. Place the bread crumbs in a large bowl. Pour 1/4 cup of the butter/celery mixture over the cubes and toss well. Repeat until all of the mixture is used.
4. If the mixture is dry, add the chicken stock in 1/4 cup increments, mixing well. Do not over moisten.
5. Bake for 1 hour.
Cranberry Salad
Makes: 8 servings
Prep time: 4 hours
Cook time: 0 minutes
- 4 oz can crushed pineapple
- 3 oz package black cherry Jello
- 6 oz dried cranberries, rinsed
- 1 cup pecans, lightly chopped
- 1/2 cup sugar or Splenda
- Sour cream or whipped cream for garnish
1. Drain pineapple and reserve juice.
2. Add juice to 1/2 cup hot water and heat to boiling.
3. Soften gellatin in 1/4 cup cold water. Add to hot water/juice mixture. Let cool until it starts to set, but don't let the gellatin harden.
4. Put cranberries in a grinder (or blender) and grind well.
5. Add berries, pineapple, nuts and sugar to cooled gellatin mixture. Mix well. Pour into bowl or mold and refrigerate until set.
6. Place mold into warm water bath and run a knife around edges to loosen. Invert onto a serving plate. Garnish with parsley and a dollop of sour cream or whipped cream.
Grilled Sweet Potatoes with Pecan Butter
Makes: 4 servings
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 25-30 minutes
- 4 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/4" thick slices
- 1 large sweet or Spanish onion, sliced thin and separated into rings
- 3 T vegetable oil
- 1/3 cup butter, softened
- 2 T light brown sugar
- 1/4 t salt
- 1/4 t ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup chopped pecans, toasted
1. Preheat grill to medium, about 350 degrees.
2. Alternatively place potato slices and onion rings on a large sheet of aluminum foil. Brush with oil.
3. Place another sheet of foil over potatoes and seal along edges.
4. Place on grill for 25-30 minutes or until potatoes are fork tender.
5. In a small bowl, mix the butter, sugar, salt and cinnamon. Stir in pecans.
6. Open packets and top with pecan butter. Serve.
Roasted Brussel Sprouts
You can find the recipe here.
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