If you are looking something different this year for your Thanksgiving dinner you can try the following Mediterranean diet recipe for turkey. As it was stated many times, the Mediterranean diet is not a deprivation diet; it is a way of living. It is a way of living with Mediterranean foods where everything is consumed with in moderation.
For the Thanksgiving table we recommend the traditional Mediterranean staffed turkey with Mediterranean ingredients.
The following recipe is for 8-10 people.
Ingredients
For the turkey
1 whole turkey about 9-11 lbs
¼ cup lemon juice
½ cup orange juice
½ cup olive oil
For the stuffing
½ cup of rice
½ lb pork minced meat
½ lb beef minced meat
¼ cup finely chopped onion
The turkey’s offal
1 cup of chestnuts, boiled, peeled and cut
1 ¼ ounces of pine seeds
6 tbsp of olive oil
Salt and pepper
½ cup of water
Preparation
For the stuffing
Wash well and cut into pieces the turkey’s offal. In a deep pot, pour the olive oil and sauté the onion and minced meet. Then throw in the rice and continue to sauté for a few minutes more. Add the chestnuts, pine seeds, salt and pepper and leave on fire for a few more minutes.
For the turkey
Wash the turkey well and let it dry up. Until it dries up take that orange and lemon juices and mix them with olive oil. Brush the mixture all over the turkey. Fill up the turkey with the stuffing, sew it and put it in a pan with water with the breast side upwards. You let it cook in the over at 320 F for about 1 hour for every 2 lbs of its weight. During the whole process of the cooking you brush the turkey with the juice mixture. (If needed, make a new mixture). The important thing is not to let it dry
For the Garnishing
Sauté in some olive oil: carrots, mushrooms, artichokes and orange peelings, for a few minutes and put them around the turkey in the tray that it will be served. Before presenting the turkey you pour some brandy on top of it and light it, creating the flambé effect.
Enjoy with some nice red wines appropriate for the holidays and the season.
Happy Thanksgiving by the Mediterranean diet!
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