1.
Heat the oven to 350° F/ 175° C / Gas 4. Bring a large pot of
salted water to a boil. Discard stalks from the greens, loosely
roll the leaves and shred them as finely as possible. Chop the
scallion and celery tops (you won’t need the bottoms), reserving
4 celery sprigs for decoration. Add all the greens to the
boiling water and parboil until wilted, 2 to 3 minutes. Drain
them, refresh with cold water, and drain them thoroughly.
2. For
the stuffing: Mix the greens in a bowl with the red pepper
flakes, mustard seed, celery seed, salt and pepper. Taste,
adding a little Tabasco if you like the stuffing hot. With a
sharp knife, slit the turkey breast horizontally and open it up
to butterfly it. Lay the ham in a layer on the breast and spread
the stuffing on top, almost to the edge of the meat. Roll the
breast to a cylinder, enclosing the stuffing. Secure it with
toothpicks or tie it with string.
3. Set
the breast in a baking dish and pour over the chicken stock and
half the sherry. Cover with foil and bake in the oven until a
skewer inserted in the breast for 30 seconds is very hot to the
touch when withdrawn, 1 to 1 1/4 hours. A meat thermometer
inserted in the centre should measure 185° F / 85° C. Turn the
breast once and baste occasionally during cooking.
4.
Transfer the breast to a dish and keep it warm. For the sauce:
Melt the butter in a saucepan, whisk in the flour and cook until
foaming. Whisk in cooking liquid from the chicken and bring the
sauce to a boil, whisking constantly until it thickens, up to 10
minutes. Add the cream and simmer 2 minutes, or longer if needed
to reduce the sauce until it coats the back of a spoon. The
turkey breast can be kept for a day, wrapped in foil in the
refrigerator, with the sauce separately.
5. To finish: If necessary, reheat the breast
in a moderate oven, still wrapped in foil. Transfer it to a
chopping board, cover and keep warm for 5 to 10 minutes before
carving. Reheat the sauce, stir in the remaining sherry, then
taste and adjust the seasoning. Discard the toothpicks or string
from the turkey breast. Cut it into 3/8 inch / 1cm slices,
displaying the spiral pattern of the filling, and arrange on a
warm platter or four plates. Spoon over the sauce, top with
celery sprigs, and serve.
Quick Fix
Substitute a package of chopped frozen
spinach for the greens and you’ll still have an interesting,
colorful stuffing.
What Wine
To Cook: The sherry used in preparing
the turkey and its accompanying sauce can be fairly sweet (often
labeled Amontillado or "cocktail") or fully sweet (usually
called Oloroso or "cream"). Given the spiciness of the stuffing,
it need not be an expensive bottle.
To Drink: This variant on a Southern Maryland classic
offers an opportunity to sample the local wines or those from
other mid-Atlantic states like Virginia, Pennsylvania and New
Jersey. If it were up to me, I'd select a chardonnay from
Virginia.
This Recipe of the Month
selection comes from Anne Willan's newest release: Anne
Willan Cooking With Wine (2001) published by Harry N.
Abrams, Inc. in association with COPIA: American Center for
Wine, Food, and the Arts.
