TABLE TALES Cookbook- Holiday Entertaining

If you are hosting a Christmas dinner party, you may be daunted by the amount of work involved. Having the food menu taken care of ahead a time means you can get down to the business of having an enjoyable time.  Authors, Ray Repp and Richard Alther  both well-known hosts in their twins communities of Vermont and California have recently released a cookbook containing wonderful recipes for entertaining.  The TABLE TALES cookbook include 15 intriguing dinner party menus that are composed of appetizer, first course, main course, and dessert recipes.

With the Christmas season right around the corner I thought I would share a recipe for roast boneless turkey from the newly released  Table Tales cookbook.

Roast Boneless Turkey Breast

To create the roast of turkey breast have your butcher bone and butterfly a whole turkey breast. At home remove all the skin from the boneless turkey, as well as any residual fat. Lay the two halves of the turkey breast flat on the table. Push the point of a sharp knife into several sections throughout the meat. Into these incisions insert the slivers of fresh garlic.

Mix together the salt, pepper and thyme and sprinkle liber- ally over the turkey breast. Arrange the breast halves together and roll into a tight “roast”. Tie together in 3 or 4 places with the string. Sprinkle the remaining salt/thyme mixture over the roast. Spray the roast with the olive oil spray.

Put the roast onto a rack that fits inside a baking pan, so the roast is elevated above the pan. Sear in a pre-heated 500° oven for 20 minutes until the roast begins to brown. Reduce the temperature to 350° and continue baking for one to one and a half hours (depending on size of your roast) until a meat thermometer reaches 170°. Remove from oven and allow to rest for at least 20 minutes before slicing and serving. (1/2 inch slices work nicely).

The roast can be prepared early in the day and returned to the oven to warm before serving. To save time slice the roast earlier in the day and then, keeping the slices together in the original roast form, wrap it all tightly in foil. Rewarming in the foil, 300º for 15 minutes, retains the moisture and it is then ready to serve when your guests are assembled.

A Simple Sauce for the Roast

After you have removed the roast from the baking dish, put the baking dish on the stove over medium heat and pour in ½ cup dry white vermouth (or other dry white wine). Scrape the drippings until they are incorporated with the vermouth. Simmer for a few minutes and taste for salt. You can extend this sauce by adding some water, mixed with a teaspoon of corn starch, and whisking until it thickens slightly. This sauce can be kept in the fridge for several days before rewarming in a sauce pan; or frozen for 2 or 3 weeks with the roast.

Purchase the book

If you’re planning on entertaining this holiday season, treat yourself to a copy of Table Tales. This book would also make a great gift for the cook in your life who loves entertaining.

Table Tales (Regent Press, 2018) is available at Amazon.com as well as your local bookstore. For more information, please visit TableTalesCookbook.com.