Recipe: Thanksgiving Sheet-Pan Dinner

November 20, 2020 at 3:18PM
Meredith Deeds, Special to the Star TribuneSheet pan thanksgiving dinner.
Meredith Deeds, Special to the Star TribuneSheet pan thanksgiving dinner. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Thanksgiving Sheet-Pan Dinner

Serves 2 (with generous leftovers) to 4.

Moist turkey, flavorful cornbread stuffing, roasted vegetables and baked sweet potatoes with an out-of-this-world brown butter praline sauce is done mostly on one sheet pan in about 2 hours with very little fuss. All you need is your favorite cranberry sauce and a pie or two to complete this easy but impressive Thanksgiving Day dinner. From Meredith Deeds.

Note: The stuffing can be made with store-bought cornbread, which can be on the sweeter side. If you don't care for that level of sweetness, consider making your own. Typically there's an easy recipe on the back of most cornmeal boxes; just omit the sugar.

Roasted Turkey Breast With Cornbread Sage Stuffing:

• 4 tbsp. unsalted butter, softened, divided

• 8 oz. bulk breakfast or sage pork sausage

• 1 medium onion, chopped

• 4 tbsp. finely chopped fresh sage leaves, divided

• 1 1/2 tsp. dried thyme, divided

• 1 3/4 tsp. salt, divided

• 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper, divided

• 3 c. cubed cornbread)

• 4 c. cubed (11/2-in.) day-old French baguette

• 1 1/4 c. low-sodium chicken stock

• 1 bone-in, skin-on turkey breast half (3 to 4 lb.), patted dry

Brown Butter Pecan Praline Baked Sweet Potatoes:

• 4 small sweet potatoes

• 2 tbsp. unsalted butter

• 1/3 c. brown sugar

• 2 tbsp. heavy cream

• Pinch of salt

• 1/3 c. chopped toasted pecans

Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Mushrooms:

• 1 lb. Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved

• 8 oz. cremini mushrooms, cleaned and halved

• 3 tbsp. olive oil

• 1/2 tsp. salt

• 1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

• 1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Spray an 18- by 13-inch rimmed sheet pan with cooking spray. Place a 15- by 12-inch piece of heavy-duty foil on pan; spray with cooking spray.

In a 4-quart saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter over medium-high heat. Add sausage and onion; cook, stirring, for 7 to 10 minutes, until sausage is no longer pink. Add 3 tablespoons of the sage, 1 teaspoon thyme, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and 1/4 teaspoon of the pepper; cook and stir 1 minute. Remove from heat.

Add cornbread and baguette cubes and broth to sausage mixture. Stir to combine.

Mound stuffing in center of foil on sheet pan.

In small bowl, mix remaining 2 tablespoons of the butter, 1 tablespoon sage, 1/2 teaspoon thyme, 1 1/4 teaspoons salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Rub the butter mixture all over turkey breast, and place breast on top of stuffing. Pull up all four sides of foil around stuffing and turkey breast and move to one side of pan. Place sweet potatoes on other half of pan.

Roast for 45 minutes. Check the sweet potatoes and remove them if they are tender, and loosely cover the breast with foil if it's browning too quickly. Continue to roast for another 15 to 45 minutes (depending on the size of the breast), until skin is crisp and golden brown and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast registers 160 degrees, and sweet potatoes (if they are still baking) are tender when pierced in center with fork. Remove pan from oven; transfer turkey breast to a cutting board. Move sweet potatoes to a serving plate and cover to keep warm. Return stuffing to the oven to brown the top. Let turkey stand 20 minutes before carving.

While turkey is cooking, prepare the praline sauce. In a small saucepan, cook 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat until melted. Continue to cook for 1 to 3 minutes or until butter is lightly browned, stirring occasionally. Add brown sugar, cream and pinch of salt and bring to boil. Cook for another 1 to 2 minutes, until thickened, and then stir in pecans. Remove from heat and set aside.

Just before the turkey comes out of the oven, in medium bowl, add Brussels sprouts, mushrooms, olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Toss to coat. Arrange vegetables on other side of sheet pan, opposite stuffing (without the turkey, which has been transferred to a cutting board). Bake about 20 to 25 minutes, until the vegetables are browned and tender. Check the stuffing after 10 minutes and remove if the top has browned.

Transfer the stuffing to a serving bowl. Transfer Brussels sprouts to a serving bowl. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar and toss to coat.

Reheat the praline sauce. Make a slit in the sweet potatoes and squeeze ends to open. Spoon some of the warm sauce into each sweet potato.

Carve turkey and serve with stuffing, vegetables and sweet potatoes.

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