BACON WRAPPED, STUFFED TURKEY BREAST with HERBY GRAVY

METHOD

For the turkey

Remove the turkey breast 2-3 hours before you intend to cook it to bring it up to room temperature.

Preheat the oven to 180c. Place 1 diced onion, garlic, sage, thyme and rosemary into a large oven tray. Gently turn the breast over being careful to keep the bacon lattice attached. Season with sea salt and cracked
pepper and turn the breast back over. Drizzle 50ml of olive oil over
the bacon. Place the breast, bacon side up, on top of the onions and
herbs. Add 300ml of water to the oven tray being careful not to
moisten the bacon. Tent the oven tray with tinfoil and place the tray
into the oven. Cook the turkey for 20 minutes per 500g of its total
weight – for example, a 4kg turkey would cook for 160 minutes or 2
hours and 40 minutes.

After 3 quarters of the cooking time, remove the foil. Cook the breast for the remaining time uncovered to colour and crisp up the bacon. Throughout the last quarter of the cooking time, check the temperature of the turkey by placing a meat thermometer into the centre of the thickest part of the bird. If the temperature has reached 65-70c remove the breast from the oven and loosely cover with tinfoil.

Rest somewhere warm for at least 30 minutes. The temperature will continue to rise by a further 7-8 degrees whilst resting and the breast will be perfectly cooked through.

For the gravy

In a large saucepan, sweat the onions, celery, carrots and bay leaf for 10-12 minutes until the vegetables have began to colour. Add the wine and stir the bottom to remove any caught bits from the base of the pan. Reduce the wine by half. Add the Truefoods gravy and thyme and bring to the boil. Pass the gravy and set aside.

To serve

After resting, carefully place the turkey on a large serving board. Locate the strings that are holding the breast together and with sharp scissors, cut the strings just above the knot. Holding the knot, carefully pull each string out being careful not to pull the bacon away. Discard the strings.

Strain any resting juices into a bowl or saucepan and skim the fat from the top. Add the juices to the gravy and reheat.

Carve the turkey into lovely thick slices, douse with gravy and serve with all of your favourite sides and trimmings.