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These festive stuffed turkey rolls wrapped in bacon are easy, fun and look gorgeous sliced up to join the rest of the Thanksgiving or Christmas feast.
The mushroom and spinach stuffing infuse the turkey meat with a delicate and fresh flavour. At the same time, the bacon renders and poaches the turkey to perfection, plus gives a crispy, delicious coating.
They cook in no time and match perfectly with homemade cranberry sauce and gluten-free gravy.
If you are looking for a fuss-free turkey dish this season, without the hassle of roasting a whole turkey, these festive stuffed turkey fillets are convenient to prepare and cook ahead of time. Additionally, this could be an excellent alternative for those celebrating Thanksgiving or Christmas in a warmer climate.
Imagine, no craving or messing with bones etc! Plus, you can use any leftover turkey slices to create a wholesome festive salad.
How to prepare the turkey fillets
- Flatten the turkey fillets with a mallet or the back of a rolling pin to an even thickness of no more than 2 cm. Season each side of the fillet with salt & pepper.
- Arrange 4 bacon rashers on a flat surface slightly overlapping each other.
- Position a turkey fillet on top sideways and place some spinach leaves in the centre of the turkey fillet, followed by the mushroom mixture.
- Gently roll the bacon and turkey fillet until it reaches the end.
- Insert 3 pre-soaked toothpicks to hold the turkey roll together.
- Place in the casserole dish. Ready to go in the oven!
What goes well with turkey:
Homemade cranberry sauce
is one of the easiest fruit reductions to make that really makes a difference to a festive meal by combining aromatic spices like star anise, cinnamon and a generous sliver of orange peel.
Some tips when making cranberry sauce:
- Keep the heat at a medium-low level with the lid on while cooking the cranberries as the heat gently pops the occasional cranberry which can jump out of the pan unexpectantly.
- Use fresh seasonable cranberries, otherwise, if these are unavailable, frozen cranberries are just as good. Allow some extra time for them to thaw in the pan while cooking.
- The longer the cranberries cook, the thicker the jam will be, so cook until it reaches your preferred level of texture.
- Serve the cranberry jam semi-pulpy or blitz it to a smooth consistency.
Homemade gravy
Homemade gravy gently cooking on the stove is pure winter comfort food.
This gravy recipe can be made weeks ahead before your festive occasion, as it can be successfully stored away frozen. The addition of cornflour thickens the gravy and best of all makes it gluten-free.
If you prefer a simplified creamier gravy, my gluten-free creamy gravy served with Swedish meatballs can be made in half the time. Use the turkey juices collected at the bottom of the casserole tray to add to the gravy.
Festive Stuffed Turkey Fillets
Equipment
- 18 toothpicks, soaked in water for 20 mins before cooking
- casserole tray
- meat mallet or tenderiser
Ingredients
Mushroom & Spinach Stuffing
- 2 tsp butter
- 3 shallots, chopped finely
- 5 brown or button mushrooms, chopped finely
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped finely
- 1 tbsp fresh sage, chopped finely
- 1 tsp ground nutmeg
- 2 handfuls fresh spinach leaves, shredded roughly
- salt & freshly black pepper, to season
Rolled Turkey Fillets
- 6 turkey fillets
- 24 bacon rashers, smoked or unsmoked
- salt & freshly black pepper, to season the turkey fillets
- 1 handful fresh cranberries, to decorate
- 1 handful fresh spinach or rocket leaves, to decorate
Homemade Cranberry Sauce
- 250 g fresh or frozen whole cranberries
- 2 shallots, chopped finely
- 1 tbsp butter
- 125 g caster sugar
- 1 strip orange peel
- 1 orange juiced
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 whole star anise
- ½ tsp salt
Instructions
Mushroom & Spinach Stuffing
- Melt the butter in a small frying pan over medium heat.
- Add the shallots and mushrooms and fry for 5 minutes.
- Next, add the garlic. and fry for 2 minutes.
- Add the fresh parsley and sage. Turn the heat off and allow the mixture to cool down. Season with salt and pepper. Taste and add more if needed. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, mix the shredded spinach leaves with the ground nutmeg. Set aside.
Rolled Turkey Fillets
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F.
- Flatten the turkey fillets with a mallet or the back of a rolling pin to an even thickness of no more than 2 cm. Season each side of the fillet with salt & pepper.
- Grease an oblong casserole dish and start assembling the rolled turkey.
- First, arrange 4 bacon rashers on a flat surface slightly overlapping each other.
- Next, place a turkey fillet on top sideways.
- Place some spinach leaves in the centre of the turkey fillet, followed by the mushroom mixture.
- Gently roll the bacon and turkey fillet until it reaches the end.
- Insert 3 pre-soaked toothpicks to hold the turkey roll together. Place in the casserole dish.
- Continue with the remaining turkey fillets, and line them up together in the casserole dish once rolled. Cover the casserole with foil and roast for 20 minutes.
- Cover the casserole with foil and roast for 20 mins. After 20 mins, remove the foil.
- Scatter some fresh cranberries on top and continue roasting for 15 mins uncovered, or until the bacon appears crisp and golden. If you like it extra crispy, turn the grill/broiler on for a few minutes.
Serving
- Once the turkey rolls have cooled down slightly, remove the toothpicks.
- Either served them whole or allow 30 mins for the rolls to cool down before slicing them and arranging them attractively on each dinner plate.
- Serve with homemade cranberry sauce and homemade gluten-free gravy
Homemade Cranberry Sauce
- Melt the butter gently in a small saucepan.
- Add the chopped shallots and fry over medium heat for 5 minutes.
- Add the cranberries and mix well.
- Add the remaining ingredients and cook for 20 mins or until the cranberries have softened and reduced slightly.
- Store in a sterilised jar or serve immediately in a bowl.
Notes
Festive Stuffed Turkey Fillets
- Keeps for 3 days chilled
- Suitable to freeze either raw or cooked
Homemade Cranberry Sauce
- Keeps for 4 weeks chilled in a sterilised jar
- Suitable to freeze in small portions or ice-cube trays
Hi Sandra, here in Canada, we celebrate Thanksgiving about 6 weeks sooner (2nd weekend in October every year) so we’ve already had our Thanksgiving, but I’m definitely going to give these a try for Christmas. That sweet potato salad and stuffing looks and sounds scrumptious!
Thank you and Happy Thanksgiving to you and your loved ones Xo
Thanks, Joanne! I hope you had a great Canadian Thanksgiving back in October with your family! Enjoy cooking the recipes this Christmas! All the best xxx