After Thanksgiving last year (which BTW seems like ages ago), I purchased 2 half turkey breasts which were on sale. I baked up one of the breasts (Herb Roasted Half Turkey Breast with Pan Gravy) at the time and stuck the one I fixed yesterday into the freezer. Both preparations are really delicious and both perfect for a small group at Thanksgiving table or for people like Mr. C. and me, for whom turkey sandwiches are the next best thing to Cheetos. Also leftover turkey is perfect in soups and other delightful dishes. (There will be recipes forth coming.)   

While I was drifting off to sleep last night, after having earlier partaken of this fabulous turkey, I couldn’t help but wonder what Thanksgiving would be like this year with the coronavirus pandemic probably still in full swing. Just Andy and me still social distancing ourselves from our loved ones? Still not able to visit with or hold our newest great grandchild? Not being able to bake a French Apple Pie for our dear friend Jim? Etc. etc. All these thoughts tumbled through my head as I was trying, valiantly, to put all thoughts of the real and potentially devastating effects this pandemic has and potentially could bring to our world. Eventually I drifted off.

But this morning, still kind of reeling from my concerns about what our future could look like, I performed all of my morning rituals – read the paper (on line), drank my coffee, showered, fixed breakfast, then sat down to read my email and Facebook. And a very good and lovely woman I know (Pat J.) had posted this quote from Arundhati Roy. “Historically, pandemics have forced humans to break with the past and imagine their world anew. This one is no different. It is a portal, a gateway between one world and the next. We can choose to walk through it, dragging the carcasses of our prejudice and hatred, our avarice, our data banks and dead ideas, our dead rivers and smoky skies behind us. Or we can walk through lightly, with little luggage, ready to imagine another world. And ready to fight for it.”

Reading this was just what I needed this morning. It actually gave me hope. Instead of worrying about what I might be losing, I should focus on the many gains that might come from people uniting against a common enemy. And thanksgiving took on a new meaning for me.

So what if it’s just Andy and me at table on Thanksgiving Day. We still have so much to be thankful for. We have each other, we have this wonderful new great grandchild to love and cherish even if we can’t pick him up right now, and we have a terrific family and dear friends that we can hopefully lavish baked goods on for many more years to come. Just maybe not this year. (And yes Jim, you and Margo will be the first to get an apple pie and cinnamon rolls for Christmas morning if and when it is safe to do so.)

So to all, stay positive, keep cooking, and count your blessings. Happy thanks giving.

1 (about 3-3 ½ lb.) half turkey breast (not boneless)

¼ c. (½ stick) unsalted butter

1 T. fresh lemon juice

1 tsp. granulated garlic

1 tsp. granulated onion or onion powder

1 tsp. finely chopped fresh rosemary

½ tsp. kosher salt

½ tsp. dried sage

½ tsp. paprika

¼ tsp. dried thyme

freshly ground black pepper

3 c. chicken stock, divided, or more as needed

flour

milk or part water, if the gravy is too rich

1-2 tsp. cognac

About an hour before you plan to put the turkey breast in your oven, remove it from your refrigerator, wash it very thoroughly, remove any fat or extraneous tissue, etc. from the meat, and dry it well with paper towels. Loosen the skin from the meat. Don’t remove the skin, but just separate it from the meat. Place the meat, skin side up on a meat rack set in a low sided baking pan.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, melt the butter and whisk in the lemon juice, granulated garlic, granulated onion, rosemary, salt, sage, paprika, thyme, and black pepper. Set aside.

When ready to bake the breast, slather it with half of the butter mixture making sure some of the butter gets between the skin and the meat.  

Pour 2 cups of the chicken stock in the bottom of the pan. If needed, during the time the turkey is in the oven, add the additional 1 cup of stock to maintain liquid in the baking pan at all times.  

Transfer the pan to a pre-heated 425 oven and bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and slather the remaining butter mixture over all. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees and continue to roast turkey breast for 45-60 minutes, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of breast registers 160 degrees. (Don’t worry, the temperature will continue to climb while the turkey breast rests).  

When the turkey breast is done, transfer to a platter, tent with aluminum foil, and let rest at least 30 minutes before slicing. Retain the liquid and brown bits in the bottom of the pan for gravy.

To make the gravy: Place the roasting pan on the stove after the turkey has been removed. Turn the heat to very low and begin making your gravy immediately. (Good gravy flavor and consistency require time to develop.) Do not remove any fat from the pan and do not strain the liquid. Whisk in enough flour to absorb the fat. Let burble for a couple of minutes. (This process takes time, so be patient.) Slowly whisk in milk or water until you reach the desired thickness you like. Taste the gravy. Add a bit of salt and/or pepper, if needed.

Turn heat as low as possible and let the gravy simmer away for the next 30 minutes or so, whisking periodically. (You will probably need to add more milk or water during this time.) Also, after the turkey is sliced and plated, don’t forget to add the juices that have accumulated on the platter to the gravy.

Just before serving (and gravy should be the last item plated), taste the gravy and make any final adjustments to the seasoning. Stir in the cognac and serve piping hot.