Spring Turkey

Published on May 3, 2013 | in Blog Post By Tom Henkenius |

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Spring has finally arrived, full of promise bringing the opportunity to at last get in the yard, flower bed, herb garden, and so much more. Green sprouts are emerging from every tree, shrub, and lawn. Relief from dreary days when the weather was gray, damp, and no fun whatsoever, has given me hope for so many good things to come: Easter in just another week; the first trip to the local farmer’s market and area flea markets; and the chance to eat local, fresher vegetables, fruits and – hooray – fresh herbs!!

I planted my basil this week, and I can already taste the pesto, my mouth is watering for those delicious BBT’s—little mini open faced sandwiches with great mayonnaise, fresh tomatoes, crisp bacon, and ribbons of basil on top – caprese salads, Bruschetta and so much more.

I’m lucky my aromatic rosemary grows year round on the side of the house, it served as the basis for this week’s Herb Roasted Spring Turkey. Funny how just a little fresh herb goes a long, long way. The Old Bay seasoning is also a great touch; again, just a little goes a long way, and the flavor it adds?? Oh, my!! The marinade I poured around the base of the turkey is a brand named Allegro, I certainly hope it’s available in your local market—although it tends to be a little salty, it still serves as the base for a fabulous au jus for your turkey and the rice dish we’re making this weekend. As to the saltiness, that’s why you’d want to cut the pan drippings with some white wine, chicken stock or both. And since this isn’t a Thanksgiving meal – serving 10+ – I sliced the turkey in half: half a turkey, half the cooking time.

Now, if you’re wondering, what do I do with the other half of that turkey, always consider making turkey salad. Our local country club’s chicken salad is actually turkey salad with the most amazing amount of dried dill in it—no one has ever questioned the substitution! It’s simply incredible, the turkey is very finely chopped, and very little mayo is added, so it’s very fresh and clean tasting with that dill, and no way does it make the bread soggy! Baking or roasting imparts so much more natural flavor, do that instead before you consider boiling the rest of the bird!

Y’all have to realize by now, I’m not exactly known as the happy baker around my house. I do a very few things extremely well, and the rest, oh, well, let’s not talk about the rest of my baking skills. These Baked Pear in Puff Pastry, however, are an entirely different story! Yes, I do consider wrapping puff pastry around some pears with some REALLY good stuff inside those pears to be real baking. At least at my house. I loved the way these pears turned out, so golden on the outside with that drizzle of chocolate, the brown sugar melted, and the Brie, oh so soft—I want one right now!! Hope you enjoy yours!!