Stuffed turkey breast with spinach and mushrooms is a really easy but delicious and sophisticated way to make a Thanksgiving turkey. Just season, stuff and roast!

This post is sponsored by the National Turkey Federation. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

We’ve been choosing turkey breasts for our Thanksgiving main dish for years now instead of a whole turkey.

They are a great way to serve a smaller crowd. They’re also a great option if you prefer light meat over dark meat. Everyone gets the light!

Plus, I love that the leftovers are ideal for sandwich making. (I look forward to my leftover Thanksgiving turkey cranberry cream cheese sandwich all year long!)

And I think stuffing turkey breasts makes them even more special and holiday table worthy. (Plus, it’s really very easy. Promise.)

This spinach and mushroom stuffed turkey breast is so flavorful, tender and juicy and has a great savory richness to it.

The stuffing adds extra interest and yumminess to every bite and the crispy browned skin on top is just irresistible!

Plus, you only need 5 ingredients (besides the turkey and the basics) to make this. That keeps things nice and simple, which is key during what can be a stressful holiday meal planning and prepping time.

Also, I've gotta mention that this is gluten-free as is, as well as paleo and keto-friendly. Cause there are bound to be some dietary restrictions and preferences when you gather a group together at the holidays!

Oh, and if the idea of the stuffing part seems intimidating, let me assure you, if I can do it, you can do it.

Don’t worry, we’re not flattening the turkey breast and deboning it and rolling it and tying it up and doing what sounds to me like Olympic-level craziness with it. We’re just cramming in the stuffing and plopping it in the oven.

Seriously, you know I’m keeping it easy!

Tips on how to stuff a bone-in turkey breast:

• First, separate the skin from the breasts. You’ll want to start at the opening and slide your fingers just underneath the skin. It should loosen without much effort. Run your hand all the way to the back side of the breast so that the skin is fully loosened.
• Repeat on the other side. Now you have two pockets in which to add your stuffing.
• You can get about 1 cup of stuffing into each pocket, give or take.
• The remainder can be stuffed underneath the neck flap. Just cram it in there.
• You can use metal skewers to secure the neck flap down if desired. (I am lazy and tend to just fold that big flap of skin down over the stuffing and call it a day.)

Here’s a photo before I folded it down, so you can see where everything goes.

So I hope that took the guesswork out of it! Trust me, this is very do-able.

I’m also thrilled to be partnering with the National Turkey Federation for this post. Earlier this fall, in partnership with them, I shared my turkey taco rice skillet, which is a weeknight dinner favorite.

Today’s holiday-themed recipe is based on one from their own collection of turkey recipes on their site.

I also wanted to share some key tid-bits with you about food safety and turkey cooking that’s especially important to remember this time of year.

Turkey cooking tips

- You do NOT need to rinse your turkey. Rinsing it can actually spread bacteria around your kitchen.

- It helps to use a thermometer to check the temperature of your turkey. (I love this one.) It needs to reach 165-170.

- When cooking a whole turkey, it helps to check the temperature in three places: the innermost part of the thigh, thickest part of the breast and innermost part of the wing. (I also check three spots when cooking a whole turkey breast like this. And be sure one spot is the innermost part of the breast so you can make sure the very middle is cooked through.)

- Refrigerate perishables within two hours.

I hope that’s helpful. Undercooked turkey is no fun. (Been there ) And neither is anyone getting sick from it.

You can find this recipe and many more turkey recipes and cooking tips over at ServeTurkey.org.

But back to the stuffed deliciousness today.

I’ve got some additional notes, tips and substitutions coming up below on how to make stuffed turkey breasts. Just tryin’ to be helpful.

If you want to jump on down to the recipe already, simply scroll right on through the rest of the text. The recipe card is near the bottom of the page, above the comments section.

Notes on stuffed turkey breast:

• You need a bone-in, skin-on turkey breast for this recipe. Aim to find one that’s 8 to 9 pounds.
• The turkey needs to be completely thawed before you cook it. If you buy yours frozen, allow up to 3 days for it to thaw completely in the refrigerator.
• The frozen spinach also needs to be thawed to use in the stuffing. (You can put it in the fridge overnight.) Be sure to squeeze it out and remove all the extra liquid.
• The Parmesan cheese adds great flavor but you can skip it if you need this to be dairy-free.
• You’ll want to check your turkey at about an hour - and every so often after that - to make sure the tops aren’t browning too much. Once they’ve gotten a good deep golden brown, cover the tops with aluminum foil to prevent any burning.

OK, let’s talk basting.

How and when to baste a turkey breast:

Some people say the more, the better. Baste every 15 minutes. Park yourself by the stove and baste all day long.

I say, I ain’t got time for that. If I’m not working on the 12 other parts of the meal, I want a minute to hang out with my family. Maybe make another Bloody Mary for my mom and I.

Plus, the more you baste, the more you are opening the oven and losing heat. That means it’ll take a lot longer to cook your turkey.

So here’s my middle ground. I baste after the first full hour of cooking. This lets the turkey get going well and help that crispy skin to develop. This is also a good middle point at which to check and see if the skin is starting to brown too much. (Cover it with foil if it is.)

After that, I baste about every 30 minutes. Do-able and keeps the turkey plenty moist and getting plenty crispy on the skin.

You can go classic and baste with a turkey baster. Or you can just grab a regular kitchen spoon and scoop up the drippings from the bottom of the pan and spoon them all over the turkey breast.

Told you that I’m all about keeping it easy.

Oh and speaking of that… no roasting rack? No problem.

I often use thick slices of onions underneath the turkey breast to prop it up off the bottom of the pan. This helps the hot air circulate and cook everything through. It also makes for some seriously delicious, tender onions.

It’s a quick and easy fix.

Now, let’s get ready to eat!

How to carve a turkey breast

- The easiest way to carve a turkey breast is to cut the entire breasts off of the bone.

- Take a sharp knife and start on one side of the big center breast bone. Cut all the way along the bone and then cut down along the bone all the way to the bottom of the breast using continuous slicing motions. It should be pulled all the way away from the center breast bone now.

- Next come from the kind-of side bottom of the breast that is still attached and cut all the way across until you can lift the whole breast out. (Any parts you miss can just be pulled right off.)

- Repeat on the other side.

- Lay both turkey breasts, with the stuffing in and skin on, on your cutting board. Slice into thin or thick slices, depending on your preference, and fan out on your serving platter.

Here’s a pretty good clip of it in action that I found.

We love to decorate our turkey platter with fresh herbs, halved lemons or oranges and sometimes halved pomegranates to add some “pretty” to the presentation.

OK, so now you are ready to dive in and enjoy! (At long last!)

But you know what’s coming after the meal, right? The clean-up. The dreaded clean-up.

And that involves packing up your turkey and figuring out where in the fridge to possibly fit all the extra food.

So let’s talk about the leftovers.

How to store leftover Thanksgiving turkey

• Leftovers should be cooled then stored in the refrigerator. (Don’t let it sit out for more than 2 hours.)
• You can slice the rest of the turkey off the bone or store it still together. (If you are short on room in the fridge, it helps to slice the turkey and throw away the carcass.)
• Place the leftover turkey in a plastic storage bag, a plastic container or a bowl with a lid. Or if you still have the bones, just cover your platter well with aluminum foil or plastic wrap and place it in the fridge.
• Keep in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days.
• You can also freeze leftover turkey. Place in a freezer-safe plastic bag or container, label and date it, then store in the freezer for up to 5 months.
• Defrost in the refrigerator overnight and it’s ready to use.

And oh, there are so many great ways to use the leftovers!

Besides my favorite turkey sandwich of the year, you can also make Thanksgiving leftovers breakfast hash, Thanksgiving leftovers chef salad, 15-minute turkey noodle soup or creamy turkey artichoke casserole, just to name a few.

And stay tuned because I have a new favorite coming up next week that uses leftover turkey.

You can sign up for my free e-newsletter to get all of my new recipes delivered straight to your inbox so you never miss a thing. I’ll even send you my free e-cookbook, Healthy Weeknight Dinners, as a thank you!

I hope your turkey is juicy, your gravy is piping hot and your Thanksgiving meal is a total success.

(And I hope you can laugh at whatever ends up being the failure of the day, whether food related or not. It’s always something. )

Happy cooking and happy holidays!

XO,

Kathryn

P.S. Check out slow cooker turkey breast for a stress-free and hands-off way to cook your Thanksgiving turkey.