Smoked Turkey Breast

Ingredients

• 2 cups non-iodized sea salt
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp ground thyme
• 1 Tbsp rubbed sage
• 1 Tsp black pepper
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 fresh turkey breast, apx 2.5 lbs
• 2 gallons non-chlorinated water
• good oak, hickory, or apple-wood charcoal
• indirect heat outdoor smoker

Instructions 

1. Add water plus dry ingredients to container and mix well
2. add turkey breast to liquid and put into fridge
3. soak in fridge for about 1 1/2 hours (approximately 30 min per pound of turkey)
4. add charcoal to smoker, and bring up to steady 250 degrees
5. place turkey breast in center of the smoker, and shut the lid
6. turkey should cook for apx 45 minutes per pound, or until internal temperature is 170 degrees.
7. remove turkey breast from smoker, and let it rest for at least 15 minutes
8. remove the skin, and slice it any way you want

There's nothing like home-smoked turkey breast.  Using this method, it will come out tender, moist and delicious.  Serve it with all the fixins, or just slice it up and have a terrific turkey sandwich.  Enjoy!

3-Meat Cajun Cornbread Dressing

This 3-Meat Cajun Cornbread Dressing is more than just a dressing. It can become an entire meal in itself.

Ingredients

• 1 lb. pork steak, chopped
• 1 lb. ground beef, lean
• 1 lb. chicken livers, boiled and pureed
• 6 - 8 med. onions, chopped
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 cup green onions, chopped
• 5 stalks celery, chopped
  
• 1 pkg Lipton Beefy Onion soup mix
• 20 oz. chicken broth
• 3/4 lb. butter
• 4 boxes Jiffy cornbread (cooked)
• 1 Tbs Worcestershire sauce
• Tony Chachere's Original Creole seasoning (to taste)

Bake cornbread and set aside. You will need at least 8 cups. The more cornbread you add to this recipe, the less soupy it will become. If the mixture is too soupy, either add more cornbread or increase the oven baking time until you have obtained the desired texture.

Boil the chicken livers using just enough water to cover them. You can add a teaspoon of Tony's seasoning to give it a good taste. Mash the livers, (puree is better), and set aside for later use. Using some of the butter, brown the other two meats. Add the rest of the butter in a stock pot and saute' all of the vegetables except the garlic and green onions. (Garlic and green onions should be added to prepared foods toward the end of the cooking process.)

When the vegetables have cooked down a bit add all the meats, include the water from the boiled livers and the chicken broth; mix well. Simmer for 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Add a small amount of water at the time, if needed, to maintain a thick soupy consistency. Thirty minutes before the meat/vegetable mixture is cooked, add the minced garlic, green onions, Lipton Onion Soup mix and Worcestershire sauce.

When that is done, add the cornbread to the meat/vegetables and mix well. Place all the mixed ingredients in a large baking pan (12" x 14"). Bake at 350 degrees F. for 30 minutes, or until the desired texture is reached. 16 servings. This can be a stand-alone food or a side-dish which greatly compliments any holiday main entries, i.e., baked or deep fried turkey, as safe turkey stuffing, pork roasts, beef roasts, baked ham, outdoor barbecues, etc.

Enjoy!
KT