Description
This fun holiday twist on my favorite Tex-Mex food will bring your entire family to the table. These Turkey Dinner Tamales are one of my new go-to meals to make during the holidays.
Ingredients
Scale
For the filling
- Whole turkey breast (mine was about 7 lbs)
- 2 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 orange, quartered
- 1 onion, quartered and separated
- 1 green apple
- 4 sprigs of parsley
- 4 sprigs of rosemary
- 5 sage leaves
- 5 sprigs of thyme
- Lemon Pepper
- Salt
- Chicken broth
- 1 can of La Morena® Sliced Jalapeños
- Juice from roasting pan
For the Masa
- 2 cups corn flour
- 1 cup dried out bread, cut in 1/4 inch cubes
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp parsley, finely chopped
- 2 tsp sage, finely chopped
- 2 tsp rosemary, finely chopped
- 2 tsp thyme, finely chopped
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
- 2/3 cup shortening
For the tamales
- 20 corn husks
For the Cranberry Sauce
- 1 bag cranberries
- Juice from 3 oranges
- 1 tsp orange zest
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 Tbsp chipotle “sauce” (made from La Morena® Chipotle Peppers in Adobo)
Instructions
For the filling
- Preheat oven to 325F.
- In a roasting pan or dutch oven, place most of the carrots, orange and onion along the bottom. Place a few sprigs of the parsley, rosemary and thyme on top of the veggies, along with some sage leaves.
- Put the turkey breast on top (breast side down), then stuff with the apple, and the rest of the carrots and onion.
- Pour about 2 cups of the chicken broth into the pan (I also made sure to coat the turkey in broth and poured a little inside of the cavity).
- Finely chop about 2 Tbsp each of the parsley, rosemary, sage and thyme. In a small bowl, mix together the chopped fresh herbs, lemon pepper and salt. Rub this mixture along the outside of the turkey.
- Slow roast the turkey for 3-4 hours, until a meat thermometer placed in the thickest part of the breast reads 165F. Remove from the oven, and let the turkey rest on a cutting board for at least 30 minutes.
- Once it has rested, remove the skin and carve the turkey. Place the breast meat in a large bowl and shred. My trick is to use a hand held blender- it shreds the meat in less than a minute.
- Dice about 1/4 cup (or more if you’d like!) of the La Morena® Sliced Jalapeños, and 1/2 cup of the onions from the bottom of the roasting pan. In a medium sized skillet, heat some olive oil and cook the jalapeños and onions until fragrant.
- Add the peppers and onion to the turkey along with 1/2-1 cup of the juice from the roasting pan. Mix it all together and set to the side.
For the Masa
- In a large bowl, mix together the corn flour, chopped bread, baking powder, fresh herbs and seasonings.
- Add the chicken broth and mix throughly with your hands until it has formed a soft dough (you can add a little more chicken broth if the mixture is too dry).
- In a small bowl, whip the shortening until it’s nice and fluffy. Add to the masa mixture and continue beating the batter until it is smooth and slightly sticky.
- Set aside.
Preparing the Tamales
- Soak the corn husks in water to soften them. While soaking, pour some water into a large pot with a steamer basket and simmer.
- Drain the corn husks, then place one on a cutting board.
- Spread the masa evenly over the top half of the corn husk, then add about a tablespoon of the meat mixture in the center.
- Close the husk by rolling the tamale and folding the end upwards. Tie off with a thin strip of corn husk if needed.
- Place in the steamer and cover with a damp towel. Steam for about 1 hour, or until the masa is soft and spongy.
For the cranberry sauce
- In a single serve blender cup, blend together 1/4 cup of the La Morena® Chipotle Peppers in Adobo until it becomes a smooth “sauce”.
- In a medium sauce pan mix together the cranberries, orange juice and zest, sugar and the blended chipotles.
- Cook on medium heat for 15 minutes, or until the cranberries have burst and you have a beautiful looking sauce.
- Remove the pan from the heat and allow the cranberry sauce to cool. As it cools it will thicken into the perfect topping for your tamale!