Juicy Christmas Rolled Turkey Breast, Stuffing & Gravy

This magnificent rolled turkey breast is simple and perfect for serving up to 8 people for Christmas, Thanksgiving or just a special occasion. This turkey breast comes out succulent and perfectly seasoned with a delicious cranberry, apple and pistachio stuffing (plus extra stuffing of course!) and gravy. It's also great as it needs to be cooked a couple of hours ahead of time and can even be served cold so ideal for cold or warm weather Christmases. This is a pushy recipe Dear Reader.

Sometimes a whole turkey is too much for 6-8 people and that's when cuts like turkey breast come in handy. You can order rolled turkey breasts at the butcher or you can also find them at the supermarket, even in the freezer section. I love stuffing breasts because it gives them flavour and this restaurant quality stuffing is based on one that I got from a chef Hamish Watts many years ago. It's the best stuffing ever and I just change the fruit and nuts in it every year. Also this turkey is so succulent and perfectly seasoned I promise! Making your own rolled and stuffed turkey is much more cost effective than buying it. A 2kg stuffed turkey breast is around $165 at a butchers but is a lot less if you make it yourself.

Tips For Making A Rolled Turkey Breast

1 - If you are using a frozen turkey breast thaw it in the fridge for 4 days beforehand (for a 2kg/4lbs breast).

2 - If you order a rolled turkey breast from the butcher ask for some elasticised cooking bands to help keep the rolled up turkey in place. Thankfully I have sailor Mr NQN who is good with nautical knots and things like that that!

3 - Make the stuffing first so that it cools off. You can make the stuffing a day or two beforehand. I'm a big fan of doing as much ahead of time as possible so that you can enjoy the day being relaxed.

4 - You can also stuff the turkey and cover it and keep it in the fridge overnight. The next day just rub it with oil and season and then bake.

5 - If you don't want to use brandy, replace it with chicken stock.

• Garlic Butter Roast Potatoes
• Glazed Dutch Carrots
• Radicchio, Fennel, Orange & Candied Walnut Salad
• Christmas Tree Salad
• Home Made Cranberry Sauce
• Caramelised Garlic and Parmesan Duck Fat Roast Potatoes

Do you know where the phrase "to talk turkey" came from? It means to speak directly and get to the point, as in, "Don’t call me until you’re ready to talk turkey." The phrase apparently comes from a story about a Native American and a white man who went hunting together and divided the catch. Monica and I were talking turkey about the CEO assassin Luigi Mangione and the potential effect that it would have on people and businesses. I saw a TikTok where the Arizona Tea CEO and the Costco CEO were the only CEOs safe because they made sure to keep costs down. I mean I know it's great publicity and any big company is particularly ethical but it was a fun video.

Apparently the outgoing Costco CEO told the incoming CEO that if he raised the price of the $1.50 hot dog and drink he was out of a job and it was up to him to figure it out. He built a factory to produce the hot dogs solving the issue. I relayed this story to Monica when we were driving back from dinner one night.

When I got home I turned to Mr NQN and said "So that's basically the same as the Arizona tea cost. They'll never raise the price of them."

Mr NQN looked at me puzzled, "Huh?"

"You know Arizona tea! The big colourful cans of iced tea that sell for $1.79 in America," I said to him impatiently.

"I think you were having a conversation with someone else," he said wryly. And it was then that I realised that yes I had just continued my conversation with Monica with Mr NQN! My excuse is that December is a busy time for me and I have no idea what I am saying or doing haha!

So tell me Dear Reader, do you ever continue conversations with other people?

Christmas Rolled Turkey Breast

An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Cooking time: 2 hours

• 2kg/4lb rolled turkey breast
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper

For Stuffing

• 60g/2ozs butter
• 360g/12.7ozs white or yellow onion (around 2 medium onions)
• 4 sprigs thyme
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 100g/3.5ozs dried cranberries, rehydrated in hot water for 15 minutes and then drained
• 160g/5.6ozs apples, diced finely
• 50ml/1.7flozs brandy
• 550ml/1.1pints cream
• 300g/10.6ozs white bread, cut into 1cm/0.4inch cubes
• 60g/2ozs pistachios, toasted
• Salt and pepper to season

For Gravy

• 1/4 cup or so pan drippings
• 1 cup/250ml/8.8flozs chicken stock
• 2 tablespoons cornflour mixed with 3 tablespoons cold water

Step 1 - First make the stuffing. Place a large saucepan onto medium heat and add the butter and sweat off the onions for around 5-7 minutes. Add the thyme and garlic and sweat for another 2 minutes. Add the drained cranberries, diced apple, brandy and cream and heat to a simmer. Add the bread cubes and stir to combine making sure that the bread is soaked. Season with salt and pepper and add toasted pistachios. Set aside to cool completely.

Step 2 - Half an hour before you want to roast the turkey, take it out of the fridge. Preheat oven to 170C/338F fan forced. Place the turkey breast skin side down and place a freezer bag on top. With a mallet pound the turkey breast until just under 2cm/0.8inch thick and as even as possible. Season with some salt and pepper. Leaving an inch border, add the stuffing, you will use around a third of the stuffing or so. Roll up the turkey starting on the end without the skin so that you finish with skin on the outside. Trim the ends of the turkey if you need to. Tie with kitchen string or bands.

Step 3 - Rub oil on the outside of the turkey and season with salt and pepper. Line a baking tray with parchment or foil. Place the turkey on a rack and add some water so that the base doesn't burn. Roast for 30 minutes and then turn the turkey and replace the water at the bottom of the tray. Repeat three more times turning the turkey and replacing the water. A 2kgs/4lb turkey should be done in just under 2 hours (usually 1 hour 50-55 minutes). Place the turkey on a chopping board and allow to cool under tented foil.

Step 4 - With the leftover stuffing, place in a baking dish and cover with foil. Add to the oven and roast for the turkey's final 30 minutes. Then remove the foil from the dish and allow to brown slightly at the top for 5 minutes or until golden crisp to your liking.

Step 5 - To make the gravy, strain the juices at the bottom of the tray and place in a jug. Skim the fat from the top, then top up the just with chicken stock to make 1 cup of chicken jus. Heat in a small saucepan until simmering. In a small bowl mix 2 tablespoons of cornflour with 3 tablespoons of cold water. Turn down the heat to low on the chicken jus and whisk in the cornflour slurry in until it thickens. Serve with slices of turkey.