Why Cook? Thanksgiving Dinners As Good As Grandma’s at These Massachusetts Restaurants!
Listen, Thanksgiving dinner is delicious. But if you’re making it, it can be – and we know this is a little harsh – a nightmare. Creating nearly a dozen dishes that have to be served HOT at the same time?
It’s Pilgrim-induced PERSECUTION.
It’s hard to get Thanksgiving dinners as good as grandma’s but these Massachusetts Restaurants deliver.
Literally.
OK OK, a lot of people don’t want to outsource the MOST important meal of the year. But how about a Thanksgiving at a Massachusetts restaurant?
I was once like that, but then I spatchcocked a turkey and tried to make dinner for people with allergies, diets, intolerances and that one PICKY EATER and I was like: You know what’s easy to make? Reservations!
Also, if you get a lot of your Thanksgiving dinner from a box or a jar, I will NOT JUDGE YOU.
Thanksgiving dinner is a marathon, not a sprint. Use what you can to make it easier.
Before I lead you to the promised land of Massachusetts restaurants that serve up a Thanksgiving dinner as good as Grandma’s, this is the spatchcocked turkey recipe I used that year. It was DELICIOUS.
Turkey Roulade with Cranberry-Citrus Stuffing and Cream Gravy courtesy of Valerie Bertinelli
16 cups cubed crusty white bread (1/2-inch cubes), from 2 large round loaves
1 1/2 cups dried cranberries
2 tablespoons brown sugar
Zest and juice of 2 large oranges, zest of 4 lemons and zest of 2 medium grapefruit
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
2 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage, 2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme and 2 medium onions, finely chopped
5 stalks celery, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups chicken or turkey stock
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 large eggs
ROULADE
One 5- to 6-pound boneless whole turkey breast, skin on, butterflied
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for the baking dish
GRAVY
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup white wine
2 cups chicken or turkey stock
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh sage
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme
1/4 cup heavy cream
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
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For the stuffing: Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Lay the bread out on two rimmed baking sheets. Bake until slightly dried out, about 25 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl.
- Meanwhile, soak the dried cranberries in a bowl with the brown sugar, orange juice and all the citrus zests.
- Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sage and thyme and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the onions, celery, garlic, 1 1/4 teaspoons salt and a few grinds of pepper. Cook, stirring, until softened, 12 minutes. Transfer to the bowl with the bread, pour in the stock, and add the cranberry mixture; toss to coat. Let cool completely. Add the parsley, eggs, 1/2 teaspoon salt and some pepper and mix thoroughly.
- For the roulade: Raise the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Lay the butterflied turkey breast skin-side-down on a plastic-wrap-lined work surface. Pound with a meat mallet to an even 1/2- to 3/4-inch thickness. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.
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Spread about 5 cups of the stuffing in a 1/2-inch layer over the breast, leaving a 1-inch border on all sides. Starting on a long side, tightly roll up the breast to enclose the stuffing. Tie and secure the roulade every 1 1/2 inches with kitchen twine.
- Butter a 3-quart baking dish and fill it with the remaining stuffing.
- Gently rub the softened butter all over the roulade; sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Transfer to a rack set over a rimmed baking sheet. Roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center registers 150 degrees F, about 1 hour 20 minutes. Thirty minutes before the roulade is done, add the stuffing to the oven.
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When the roulade is at temperature and the stuffing is hot, increase the oven temperature to 475 degrees F and cook for another 5 minutes, until both are golden brown. Transfer the roulade to a cutting board, cover loosely with foil and let stand 10 minutes.
- For the gravy: Melt the butter in the roasting pan over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk to form a paste. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the white wine and bring to a boil for 2 minutes. Add the stock, sage and thyme; reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the cream. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
- Remove the twine and cut the roulade into slices. Serve with the extra stuffing and the gravy on the side.
SEE HOW HARD THAT IS? And it’s JUST ONE DISH! Which is why you should book a perfect Thanksgiving Dinner that is just as good as Grandma’s!
