Thanksgiving dinner for two
Herb-roasted turkey breast, buttery stuffing, green beans and real gravy, a whole holiday plate without a whole turkey.
- 60 min total
- 35 min hands-on
- A little more hands-on
- Serves 2
- About $4.11 a serving
- 630 calories
- Good the next day
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 2 servings.
- 1 turkey breast tenderloin, about 10 oz
- ¼ cup butter, divided, softened
- 8 oz green beans, trimmed
- 1 stalk celery, chopped
- 1 shallot, chopped
- 1½ cups chicken broth, divided
- ½ package stuffing mix, about 1½ cups
- 2 tbsp dried cranberries (optional)
From your pantry
- ½ tsp dried thyme
- ½ tsp dried rosemary
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ¾ tsp salt, divided
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
Each serving has about 630 calories, 43 g protein, 48 g carbs and 30 g fat, and costs about $4.11 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No butter? Ghee works.
- No green beans? Frozen green beans work.
- No chicken broth? Vegetable broth or bone broth works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
the oven to 400°F. Pat the turkey dry.
Preheat. Preheating means turning the oven on before you start, so it’s fully hot when the food goes in. Food that starts in a cold oven cooks unevenly and doesn’t brown the same.
How you’ll know: The oven beeps or its light clicks off, usually 10 to 15 minutes after you turn it on.
Food safety: Wash your hands, the board and the knife with hot soapy water after touching raw meat, and don’t rinse raw chicken in the sink.
Mash 1 tablespoon of the butter with the thyme, rosemary, garlic powder, ½ teaspoon of the salt and the pepper, and rub it all over the turkey.
Set the turkey in the middle of a , the green beans with the oil and remaining ¼ teaspoon salt, and scatter them around it.
Sheet pan. A sheet pan is a flat metal baking tray with a low rim all the way around. The rim catches juices, and the wide surface lets food spread out and brown.
How you’ll know: Everything fits in one layer with a little space between the pieces.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
20 to 25 minutes, until the beans are blistered and the thickest part of the turkey reads 165°F.
Roast. Roasting means cooking in a hot oven, around 400°F to 450°F, usually spread out on a sheet pan. The dry heat browns the outside and brings out sweetness, especially in vegetables.
How you’ll know: The edges are browned and a little crisp, and a fork slides easily into the thickest piece.
Timer: 22 min
Food safety: Chicken and turkey are done at 165°F in the thickest part. A thermometer is the only sure check. Without one, cut into the thickest piece: it should be white all the way through, with no pink.
While it , 2 tablespoons of the butter in a small over medium heat and cook the celery and shallot 4 minutes, until soft.
Roast. Roasting means cooking in a hot oven, around 400°F to 450°F, usually spread out on a sheet pan. The dry heat browns the outside and brings out sweetness, especially in vegetables.
How you’ll know: The edges are browned and a little crisp, and a fork slides easily into the thickest piece.
Melt. Melting means gently heating something solid, like butter or cheese, until it turns liquid. Low or medium heat keeps it from browning or burning.
How you’ll know: It’s smooth and liquid, and butter may foam a little but hasn’t turned brown.
Saucepan. A saucepan is a pot with tall, straight sides and one long handle. It’s for things that need depth, like rice, sauces or a few boiled eggs.
How you’ll know: The food fills it about halfway, leaving room to bubble without spilling over.
Medium heatTimer: 4 min
Add ¾ cup of the broth and bring it , then in the stuffing mix and cranberries, cover, and take it off the heat for 5 minutes.
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
Stir. Stirring means moving food around with a spoon or spatula so it cooks evenly and doesn’t stick. Unless the recipe says constantly, every so often is plenty, and it gives food time to brown.
How you’ll know: When you drag the spoon across the bottom, nothing is sticking or scorching.
High heatTimer: 5 min
Move the turkey to a board and cover it loosely with foil. Scrape any juices from the pan into a small bowl.
Dolly’s tip: Those browned juices are liquid gold for the gravy.For the gravy, the last tablespoon of butter in a small over medium heat, in the flour and cook 1 minute, until .
Melt. Melting means gently heating something solid, like butter or cheese, until it turns liquid. Low or medium heat keeps it from browning or burning.
How you’ll know: It’s smooth and liquid, and butter may foam a little but hasn’t turned brown.
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Whisk. Whisking means beating quickly with a whisk or a fork to blend things together. It smooths out lumps and mixes eggs, oil or sauces evenly.
How you’ll know: It all looks one even color and texture, with no streaks or lumps.
Golden brown. Golden brown is the color of good toast, somewhere between yellow and light brown. It means the outside is cooked and crisp but not burnt.
How you’ll know: It looks like toast and smells toasty; dark brown with a bitter smell means it went too far.
Medium heat
in the remaining ¾ cup broth and the pan juices and 2 to 3 minutes, until thick. the turkey and serve with the stuffing, beans and gravy.
Whisk. Whisking means beating quickly with a whisk or a fork to blend things together. It smooths out lumps and mixes eggs, oil or sauces evenly.
How you’ll know: It all looks one even color and texture, with no streaks or lumps.
Simmer. Simmering means keeping a liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles rising gently. It cooks food evenly and lets a sauce thicken without scorching on the bottom.
How you’ll know: Small, lazy bubbles break the surface every second or so, and nothing is churning.
Slice. Slicing means cutting food into flat pieces of about the same thickness. Even slices cook evenly, so none are raw while others burn.
How you’ll know: Lay a few side by side: they’re close to the same thickness from one end to the other.
Medium heatTimer: 2 min 30 sec
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
