Turkey Roll with Sausages Recipe – Fesa Di Tacchino Con Le Salsicce
If you visit an Italian supermarket you’ll find an abundance of turkey breast in the meat section: both sliced and whole, and both are quite popular: They’re low in fat, inexpensive, and whole turkey breast is quite versatile. This is a rich fall turkey roll recipe, with a sausage and mushroom filling that gains richness from hazelnuts. Perfect for company!
INGREDIENTS
- A slice of turkey breast weighing 1 1/3 pounds (600 g)
- 1/2 pound (225 g) mild sausage meat, casings removed, and crumbled
- 1 1/2 ounces (45 g) dried porcini mushrooms, steeped for 20 minutes in warm water
- 2 ounces (60 g, about 1/2 cup) toasted hazelnuts, chopped
- A pinch each dried thyme and dried rosemary
- A clove of garlic, chopped
- 1/2 cup beer (a light colored ale or lager)
- Olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Butcher’s twine
PREPARATION
Drain the mushrooms, squeezing out excess moisture (reserve the liquid, straining it with a fine-grained wire-mesh strainer as it can contain sand) and coarsely chop them.
Heat a tablespoon of oil in a saucepan, and add the mushrooms, sausages, hazelnuts, and garlic. Season with the rosemary and thyme, and salt and pepper to taste, and cook over a gentle flame, stirring gently, for about 10 minutes, by which time the sausage should be nicely browned.
Preheat your oven to 350 F (175 C).
Pound the turkey breast with a flat-faced pounder to obtain a fairly broad square sheet of meat. Season it with salt, pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil, and then spread the sausage mixture over it, leaving a slight lip around the edges of the sheet. Roll the sheet of meat and tie it with the twine as if you were tying a salami.
Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a non-stick pan large enough for the turkey roll to lie flat and brown it, turning it to color all sides. Transfer the turkey roll into a baking pan and spoon the pan drippings over it, followed by the beer. Roast the meat for about 40 minutes, basting it occasionally.
When the time is up, remove the meat to a cutting board and let it sit for a few minutes. Remove the string and slice the turkey roll thinly (1/4 inch, or 1/2 cm slices), arranging the slices on a serving platter and spooning the pan drippings over them.
The wine? Red, and I would be tempted to serve a Dolcetto here.
The mushroom juice, you wonder? It will keep covered in the refrigerator for a day or two, and you could add it to the pot when making a stew, or use it in making a risotto.