ROASTED TURKEY BREAST WITH FENNEL-HERB STUFFING

Roasted Turkey Breast with Fennel-Herb Stuffing image

This boneless turkey breast cooks fast and is exceptionally tasty, thanks to the fennel stuffing.

Provided by Martha Stewart

Categories Food & Cooking Ingredients Meat & Poultry Turkey Recipes

Number Of Ingredients 13

Ingredients

4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large onion, finely chopped (about 12 ounces)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 small bulb fennel (about 8 ounces), trimmed and finely chopped
11 slices (1/2 inch thick) country bread, trimmed of crusts and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 5 cups)
1 tablespoon fresh thyme
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh rosemary, plus sprigs for garnish (optional)
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 1/4 to 3 1/4 cups homemade or low-sodium canned chicken stock
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
1 whole boneless turkey breast (about 6 pounds)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 blood orange, thinly sliced, for garnish (optional)

Steps:

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is soft and translucent, about 4 minutes. Add fennel; cook, stirring, until tender, about 4 minutes. Transfer mixture to a large bowl. Stir in the bread, thyme, rosemary, parsley, and 1 1/4 cups stock. Season with salt and pepper. Set stuffing aside.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place the turkey, skin side down, on a clean work surface. Using a sharp knife, remove the tenderloins. To butterfly the turkey, slice vertically through the right side of breast, starting at thickest part and slicing almost to edge without cutting through (it should resemble a book, with a flap in the middle). Spread open, keeping both sides attached, and gently press down to flatten. Repeat on left side of breast. Cover with plastic wrap. Using a meat mallet or heavy skillet, pound meat until thickness is uniform.
Season turkey with salt and pepper, then spread stuffing lengthwise down middle. Fold both sides of turkey over stuffing. Using kitchen twine, tie turkey at 1-inch intervals to completely encase stuffing and form a long cylinder.
Transfer the turkey to a roasting pan. Pour 1 cup stock into pan. Brush turkey with oil, and season with salt and pepper. Roast, basting with pan juices every 30 minutes, until well browned and an instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of the turkey registers 165 degrees, about 1 3/4 hours. If the skin begins to get too dark, loosely tent pan with foil (add remaining 1 cup stock if pan gets too dry). Transfer the turkey to a carving board, and let rest 20 minutes before slicing. Garnish with rosemary sprigs and orange slices, if desired. Serve hot or at room temperature.