Herb-Crusted Turkey Breast

Lynne Wilson
of Wilson Farm, Lexington, Mass.

Food Editor's Notes: This recipe produces a moist turkey breast with a flavor that packs a punch. Lots of traditional poultry herbs and spices – chopped fresh – plus garlic and black pepper, are spread on the turkey before roasting in the oven. Lynne's original recipe calls for grilling a one-to-two pound boneless turkey breast, but this is hard to find in a kosher market and must be watched carefully to avoid drying it out while cooking. She also includes brining directions, which are unnecessary with kosher poultry. So I used Lynne's herb and garlic paste on a single bone-in turkey breast (almost 3 pounds) and roasted it in the oven, checking with a meat thermometer to make sure I wasn't overcooking it. The results were great – the turkey was moist and the thin slices with their topping of herbs looked beautiful arrayed on a platter. Leftovers are good cold – plain, in a sandwich, or topping a salad.

Ingredients

One single bone-in turkey breast, 2 1/2-3 pounds
1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh marjoram
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage
3 cloves garlic, chopped [F.E. note: I used minced garlic from a jar]
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup olive oil

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Rinse and pat dry the turkey breast. [Food Editor's note: I removed the skin, but I debated whether to do this and you could certainly leave it on if you like to eat this.]

Mix together all the remaining ingredients in a small bowl. Pack the mixture onto the turkey breast, both on the underside and the top. Place in a lightly greased roasting pan and roast in the oven for approximately one hour. Test the temperature with a meat thermometer (in the thickest part of the breast) starting at about 45 minutes and remove the pan from the oven when the temperature registers 155 degrees. Let the turkey sit for 10 minutes before slicing – the breast will continue to cook a bit with the residual internal heat.

Slice the breast meat off the bone in thin slices and lay out attractively on a serving platter. (There will no doubt be someone ready and willing to pick on the carcass!) There should be some juices left in the pan and on the cutting board and also some in the herbs that have fallen off the turkey and can be squeezed to release their liquid. Drizzle this over the turkey slices and serve immediately.

Yield: About 6 servings

Wilson Farm in Lexington is a family-owned and operated farm and farm stand that is dedicated to providing the highest quality products and service. Wilson Farm is a new advertiser on ShalomBoston.com and has contributed several recipes that we are pleased to make available on our web site. Special thanks to Lynne, who has more recipes available on the Wilson Farm web site and in The Wilson Farm Country Cookbook.

Herb Crusted Turkey Breast
ShalomBoston.com