Turkey Thighs in Red Wine Garlic Sauce

Passover is less than 3 weeks away (breathe, nice and slow… that’s it). For those celebrating the Jewish festival commemorating the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt and their freedom from slavery, I will be posting a few selected recipes over the next few weeks. In the spirit of the bumbleberry breeze philosophy, these recipes are not just helpful, but are designed to keep you from being a slave in your own kitchen (whether you’re doing Passover or not).  We want to bring you in and breeze you out.

My Novio has  early Seder memories of him and his brother looking on as his grandfather and father held court over the Seder table. In the meantime, his Mom, Grandma and aunts scurried around in the kitchen, frantic with last minute preparations for the Festive Meal that lay ahead. I want you at the Seder table and not slaving in the kitchen with last-minute dishes. Do-ahead recipes are definitely the way to go, especially for Seder night.

Here’s a recipe that you can make a few days ahead, perhaps even freeze (though I didn’t try that).

So many people now make turkey breast as an alternative for roasting an entire turkey.  I don’t know about you, but I’m getting a little tired of all this turkey breast.  And, is it just me that finds turkey breast, oh, how can I put this delicately, a tad binding?  And with all the matzoh, heavy with its own binding properties, you want to do what you can to maintain, ahem,  good traffic flow.

Ask your friendly butcher to prepare turkey thigh meat that is boneless and skinless.  That will cut down on the fat significantly and give you a tasty alternative for your table.

Diced carrots always add a depth of flavor in combination with onions and tomato.

How many times have you used a recipe that called for 1 or 2 tablespoons of tomato paste, and you took that amount out of one of those small cans of tomato paste thinking, “I’m sure I’ll find something to do with the rest of this can”, putting a little piece of aluminum foil over the top of the can and sticking it in the refrigerator.  That little can of tomato paste has now applied for permanent residency in your fridge. Let’s face it, I know for me, I’m not going to do anything with the rest of that tomato paste!!  One day, I read about tomato paste that comes in a tube, allowing you to use a small amount and put the rest in for easy access later, without it going bad any time soon. Brilliant! Inspired! A stroke of genius!

I love this stuff!

Tomato paste is a wonderful way to enrich a sauce or braise, especially when used in combination with red wine.

Once the sauce is cooked through, pour over the meat to bake.  By doing this method with skinless chicken or turkey, you are replacing the unwanted fat from the skin with very-much-wanted and needed veggies.

TURKEY THIGHS IN RED WINE GARLIC SAUCE

Ingredients:

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375°.

Rinse the turkey pieces and pat dry. Grease a roasting pan large enough to lay the meat out flat without overlapping. Generously season the turkey with salt and pepper.

Heat oil in skillet, saute onions and carrot for 5-8 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.  Add garlic and saute for another 1/2 minute.

Add red wine, tomato paste and thyme to skillet. Bring wine up to a simmer and cook until the liquid is reduced by half.

Pour mixture over turkey.

Bake, uncovered, for 1 hour, or until meat is cooked through.  Baste every 20 minutes. Tent with foil for 10 minutes after removing from oven.

Garnish with chopped parsley and slice thickly to serve.

Serves 4-6.

Hearty and delicious!

And here’s a link to  a delicious treat for Passover that I posted a year ago: Judy Zeidler’s Passover Chocolate Matzoh Farfel Nut Clusters. They’re awesomely good! Check out my post here.