HERB ROASTED TURKEY

I tend to make marinades more than dry rubs or pastes for coating meat before cooking. The herb paste that is used in this recipe can be replicated for any poultry recipe.  If you want to use the herb paste as a marinade, you would need to add more wine, lemon juice and olive oil to create the volume of liquid required to cover or coat the meat.  I made this recipe for friends and everyone enjoyed the taste of the turkey.  


Ingredients:

1 whole bone-in turkey breast, 5 to 7 pounds
1 tbsp minced garlic (3 cloves)
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tbsp dried rosemary leaves
1 tbsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 cup dry white wine or cooking wine

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Place the turkey breast, skin side up, in a roasting pan.  You can line the roasting pan with tin foil to make it easier to clean the pan afterwards.  If you plan to make a gravy from the juices, then don't line the pan with the tin foil. 

In a small bowl, combine the garlic, mustard, herbs, salt, pepper, olive oil, wine and lemon juice to make a liquid paste.  Loosen the skin from the meat gently with your fingers and smear half of the paste directly on the meat. Spread the remaining paste evenly on the skin. 

Roast the turkey for 2 hours (longer if the turkey breast is larger), until the skin is golden brown and an instant-read thermometer registers 165 degrees F when inserted into the thickest and meatiest areas of the breast.  If the skin is over-browning, cover the breast loosely with aluminum foil. When the turkey is done, cover with foil and allow it to rest at room temperature for 15 minutes.  Slice and serve with the pan juices spooned over the turkey.


Modified from www.foodnetwork.com