Classic Bread Sauce. Rich Gravy. Spiced Cranberry Sauce. Lonely Drifter Karen.

Is your turkey feeling lonely?

Here are some sauce recipes to go along with a turkey or roast chicken dinner.

If you have never tried bread sauce, give it a go. I first had it when my husband made some the first time we cooked turkey together. A faintly clove and onion flavored sauce of cream and bread, it is ubiquitous with poultry in the UK and Ireland. I wouldn’t dream of serving a turkey dinner without it now.

The Rich Gravy couldn’t be easier to make and is different than most in that white wine lends the alcohol flavor.

Finally, a standard orange cranberry sauce that gets a boost from spices, and a richness from some butter stirred in at the end of cooking.

Classic Bread Sauce

Ingredients:

500ml milk
2 onions, quartered
6 cloves
3 bay leaves
5 black peppercorns
100g (2 cups) white breadcrumbs
15g (1/2 oz) unsalted butter
4 Tbs double cream
pinch ground nutmeg

Directions:

1. Place the onion, cloves, peppercorns and bay leaves in a pan with the milk. Bring to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes.

2. Strain the milk into another saucepan and place over low heat. Add breadcrumbs and stir until smooth, then stir in remaining ingredients and season to taste.

Serves 6

Rich Gravy

Ingredients:

1 litre (1¾pt) turkey or chicken stock
150ml (¼pt) white wine
few sprigs thyme
2 bay leaves
1 Tbs cornflour or cornstarch

Directions:

1. Put the stock and the wine in a saucepan, add the herbs, then bring to the boil and bubble until reduced by half. (I added giblets from the turkey to the simmering stock)

2. Remove the herbs (and giblets), then mix the cornflour with a little cold water. Add to the stock and stir well until thickened slightly. Taste for seasoning.

3. Before serving, add the roasting juices from the turkey and bring back up to the boil. Serve in a warmed gravy boat.

Serves 8

Spiced Cranberry Sauce

Ingredients:

400g (14 oz) cranberries
Zest and juice of 1 orange
1 Tbs orange marmalade
4 Tbs brown sugar
75 ml (3fl oz) port
5 cloves
1 cinnamon stick
25g (1 oz) unsalted butter

Directions:

1. Place all the ingredients, apart from the butter, in a saucepan. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes until the cranberries are tender and begin to burst.

2. Stir in the butter and season to taste.

Serves 8

All recipes from Woman & Home Magazine

Lonely Drifter Karen came to mind as I was writing this, from the lonely aspect not the turkey one. This song is from their latest album ‘Poles’ out earlier this year.