Passalacqua Winery

Turkey “Ringraziamento”

Recipe by hunter, fisherman, author, and chef Jesse Griffiths. If you want more recipes like this one, check out his newest book: The Turkey Book.

"While wild turkeys don’t lend themselves to consistent outcomes when roasting whole, there’s no reason why you can’t apply fall flavors to them for a celebratory presentation. Here we are stuffing a breast with some familiar Thanksgiving flavors–sage, celery, onion–and adding some Italian touches in the form of pine nuts, raisins and lemon to create a familiar centerpiece that still honors the wildness of the bird.

This recipe is also scalable; you can make it with a portion of a turkey breast, or the entire breast, minus the small tenderloin running along its underside. Since the turkey breast is pounded thin and rolled around the savory stuffing, you can easily use a smaller portion of breast and a half batch of the remaining recipe for a smaller crowd, or a non-holiday weeknight meal.

Start by pounding the breast thin. Don’t fret too much if there are some holes - these will eventually be sealed in the rolling process. Next, the roast is tied and browned in a pan, then finished off in the oven. For precision, I can’t recommend a remote thermometer enough, as it enables you to cook the turkey breast to exactly the right temperature without opening the oven and constantly checking. While the turkey is in the oven, you’re making an exceptional–and exceptionally simple–sauce of slow cooked onion and turkey stock.

The polenta shouldn’t be skipped. Mounded with lots of roasted pumpkin and enriched with fontina cheese, it’s ideal for absorbing the juices from the turkey as well as the onion-rich sauce. Make this before serving and simply keep it warm until the turkey’s ready.

Serve a white wine like the ‘22 Fiano, or a jammy Zinfandel, or both. The sweetness of the raisins, the earthiness of the turkey, pumpkin and cheese, the sage and the celery invite a wide range of pairing options for this, especially if sharing wild food and bottles with a large group."-Jesse Griffiths

Serving size: 6-8
Time to make: 1 ½ hours
Special equipment: Meat thermometer

Ingredients

Turkey
1 Wild turkey breast with the tenderloin removed (about 2-3 pounds)
Salt and pepper
Stuffing
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
Heart, liver and gizzard (cleaned) of 1 wild turkey, finely chopped, optional
1 Medium onion, diced
2 stalks Celery, diced
1 4” sprig Rosemary, leaves only
20 Fresh sage leaves
½ cup white wine
½ cup heavy cream
1 cup sourdough bread, cut into 1” cubes
1 egg, lightly beaten
½ cup pine nuts
½ cup golden raisins
1 tablespoon lemon zest
Sauce
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 Yellow onions, thinly sliced
4 cups turkey or chicken stock
Pumpkin Polenta
2 cups pumpkin puree
4 cups turkey or chicken stock
3 cups milk
2 cups polenta
4 tablespoons butter
6 ounces Fontina cheese, grated
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
Salt to taste

Instructions

Prepare the turkey for stuffing: Butterfly the thicker top portion of the turkey breast to make it somewhat evenly shaped. Lay out a large sheet of plastic wrap and lay the turkey on top, then cover with another sheet of plastic wrap. Gently pound the breast with a meat mallet, taking your time, until it is of an even thickness of a little less than ½”. Don’t worry if there are a couple of holes - just try to get it fairly thin. Season to taste with salt and pepper and refrigerate while you make the stuffing and polenta.
For the polenta, roast a 2-3 pound pumpkin in a 350°F oven until tender, about 1 hour. Discard the seeds and skin and mash the remaining puree, reserving 2 cups (leftovers can go into a pie). Bring the stock and milk for the polenta to a simmer. Add the polenta in a steady stream, whisking constantly, until incorporated. Cook the polenta, stirring often, until thickened, creamy and soft, about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the pumpkin puree, Fontina, butter and nutmeg. Season to taste with salt and keep warm.
Make the stuffing: In a medium pot, heat the olive oil and butter over medium heat. Add the chopped heart, liver and gizzard and cook, stirring often, until they are browned, about 2 minutes. Add the onion, celery, rosemary and sage leaves and cook for another 5 minutes, until tender and aromatic. Add the white wine and cook until almost completely reduced, about 4 more minutes, then remove from the heat.
In a large bowl, combine the cooked giblets and vegetables with the cream, bread, eggs, pine nuts, raisins and lemon. Mix very well and allow to sit for 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Spread this filling over the pounded breast, leaving a 2” border around the entire cut. Roll this up into a large pinwheel, tucking the ends in.
Cut about a dozen foot-long lengths of butcher’s twine. Tie one end of the stuffed turkey tightly, then tie the other end. Use the remaining twine to tie the breast at about 2” intervals, trimming the excess twine. Set aside.
Preheat the oven to 325°F. In a pan large enough to hold the entire turkey breast, heat the olive oil and butter over medium-high heat. Brown the rolled breast well, turning as needed, until it is deeply browned on all sides, about 5-8 minutes. Remove the turkey from the pan and transfer to a baking or roasting dish and put it in the oven.
Add the sliced onions to the pan, turning the heat down to medium. Cook these, stirring often, until deeply browned and tender, about 10 minutes. Add the stock and simmer gently until reduced and slightly thickened, about 10-15 minutes. Season to taste with salt.
Roast the turkey until a thermometer registers 150°F at its thickest part, then immediately remove from the oven. Let rest for 5 minutes.
Remove the twine from the turkey and slice into ½” thick slices with a sharp knife (serrated works great here). Turn the polenta out onto a large platter. Lay these slices over the polenta and then spoon the onion sauce over everything.

Jesse recommends this recipe with a white wine like our Fiano or one of our Zinfandels. Other great options are the Stiling Chardonnay, and the wines listed below.
Salut!