Prep Time: 35 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours, 30 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 (5-7 lb.) turkey breast, bone in, skin on
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2 cup butter
- 3/4 cup chopped celery
- 1 onion, chopped
- 4 cups oatmeal bread cubes, dried in the oven
- 1/3 cup dried cranberries
- 1/2 tsp. dried sage leaves
- 1/2 tsp. dried thyme leaves
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. pepper
- melted butter for basting
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Rinse turkey breast and pat dry with paper towels. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and set aside.In large skillet, melt butter and cook celery and onion until tender. In large bowl, combine remaining ingredients except butter for roasting. Pour celery mixture over ingredients in bowl. Toss gently with two spoons to coat.
There are three ways to 'stuff' the breast. You can place some of the stuffing in between the two halves of the breast, then use kitchen string to loosely tie the breast closed. Or you can just put about half of the stuffing in a foil-lined roasting pan and place the breast, skin-side-up, on top. Or you can loosen the skin from the turkey neck area and stuff with part of the stuffing. Any leftover stuffing should be place in a casserole dish, drizzled with some melted butter, and refrigerated. It will bake the last half hour the turkey is roasting.
Whichever method you choose, coat the turkey with melted butter, and roast the turkey and stuffing at 350 degrees for 2 to 2-1/2 hours until an instant-read meat thermometer inserted into the meat reads 170 degrees F. Baste once or twice during roasting with pan drippings. Place leftover stuffing in the casserole, covered, in the oven for the last 30 minutes of roasting time. Cover turkey with foil when it comes out of the oven and let rest 10-20 minutes before carving. Serves 4-6
