Roasted Turkey with Sage-Cornbread Stuffing
People kept telling me how wonderful cornbread stuffing is so I had to try it.
It was DELISH!
I really am not a huge stuffing fan. At all. But this was really good.
I have made this recipe a few times now and every time I am surprised how much I love the stuffing. You wouldn’t think the sweetness of the cornbread would go well with the sage and savory flavors but it does! Mmm, it’s so good.
This recipe is for a breast only which is fabulous if you only have a small crowd for Thanksgiving or if you’re just making this for everyday. Oh yes, I enjoy cooking turkey throughout the year. Not on a regular basis or anything, I like it to still be special. But there are times other than Thanksgiving that I feel like eating turkey, so I do.
If you wanted to use this stuffing with a whole turkey you certainly can. It should be plenty to stuff a bird and have a bit leftover to bake separately. One thing I like to do after everything is cooked and the stuffing is pulled out of the bird is to mix together the stuffing from the bird and the stuffing that was baked separately. This makes everything taste just as if it was all cooked in the bird, which makes my crowd much happier since that is what they all like.
FOR THE STUFFING- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 small red onion, finely chopped
- 2 stalks celery, finely chopped
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- ¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh sage
- ½ cup chicken stock
- 4 cups stale corn bread, crumbled into large pieces
- 2 large eggs, beaten
FOR THE TURKEY - One 3½- to 4-pound bone-in turkey breast, cut in half at the breast bone (to do this, place the breast, meat side down, on a cutting board. Take the tip of your knife and shove it through at the top of the breast bone, then run the blade down the bone to cut the rest of it in half.)
- course sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 1½ tablespoons olive oil
- Start with making the stuffing. Preheat your oven to 425°F and grease 9-by 13-inch roasting pan.
- In large skillet over medium high heat, melt butter.
- Add onion, celery, garlic, nutmeg, pepper, and bay leaf, and sauté until vegetables soften, 5 to 6 minutes. Stir in sage and cook 30 seconds more. Stir in stock and simmer, uncovered, until liquid is reduced by half, about 3 minutes.
- Put corn bread in large bowl and pour vegetables over. Toss to mix well. Add eggs and stir to combine.
TO PREPARE THE TURKEY- Rinse the turkey and pat dry.
- Season generously with salt and pepper, and rub all over with olive oil.
- Mound stuffing in center of roasting pan and arrange turkey on top, making sure breast halves aren't touching.
- Roast until thermometer inserted into thickest part of turkey (do not touch bone) registers 165°F and juices run clear when pierced with fork, 45 to 55 minutes.
Recipe from Epicurious.com
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