Turkey in Cream Sauce -- Everything Is Coming

The election is decided — or being decided, or contested, depending on which channel you're watching and which reality you've chosen to inhabit, and I am choosing the reality in which the counting continues and the democracy holds and the soup is on the stove and Marvin is in his chair and the world outside my kitchen will sort itself out or it won't, but the kitchen is sorted, the kitchen has always been sorted, and I retreat to the kitchen the way Sylvia retreated to her kitchen on the Grand Concourse, which is to say not as an escape but as a headquarters, the place where you go to regroup before going back out into the world that needs you.

I made a Thanksgiving list this week — early, because Thanksgiving planning cannot begin too early and because the planning is itself a comfort, a structure, a proof that the future exists and contains a table and a turkey and the people I love. This year the question is: who can come? The pandemic has not lifted. The vaccines are rumored but not here. David is a doctor and has strong opinions about gatherings. Rebecca is in Manhattan. The safe choice is another Zoom Thanksgiving, another screen, another dinner for two with the family in rectangles. I am making the safe choice. I am making the safe choice and I am making the full menu, because safety and scale are independent variables, and I will cook for twenty and serve two and deliver the rest, because the food is not about the headcount, the food is about the commitment, and I am committed.

Marvin sat in the kitchen while I made the list. He watched me write with the attentiveness of a man watching a craft he no longer practices but still respects. "What are you writing?" he asked. "The Thanksgiving list," I said. "What are we having?" he asked. "Turkey. Stuffing. Everything." He smiled. "Everything" is a word that still works for Marvin. It's big enough and vague enough to mean what he needs it to mean, which is: you are providing. You are here. The everything is coming.

When the list says “everything,” this is part of everything — Turkey in Cream Sauce, the kind of dish that makes a small table feel abundant, that turns a two-person Thanksgiving into the full commitment I promised myself I’d keep. I chose it because it scales down gracefully without apologizing for itself, because cream and turkey together are the culinary equivalent of warmth with structure, and because Marvin, who watched me write the list from his chair, deserves a plate that means what he needs it to mean: you are here, and the everything is on its way.

Turkey in Cream Sauce

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 30 min | Total Time: 45 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 lbs turkey breast, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 small yellow onion, finely diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1 cup chicken or turkey broth
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (or 1/2 teaspoon dried)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons cold water (optional, to thicken)

Instructions

1. Season the turkey. Pat turkey pieces dry and season generously with salt and pepper on all sides.
2. Sear the turkey. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, melt butter with olive oil. Add turkey in a single layer and cook without moving for 3–4 minutes until golden. Flip and cook another 2–3 minutes. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
3. Soften the aromatics. Reduce heat to medium. Add onion to the same skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and translucent, about 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more.
4. Deglaze the pan. Pour in the white wine, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom. Let it simmer until reduced by half, about 2 minutes.
5. Build the sauce. Add the broth and thyme. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the heavy cream and return the mixture to a low simmer.
6. Return the turkey. Nestle the seared turkey pieces back into the skillet. Simmer gently over low heat for 8–10 minutes, until turkey is cooked through and the sauce has thickened. If you prefer a thicker sauce, stir in the cornstarch slurry and cook 2 minutes more.
7. Finish and serve. Taste and adjust seasoning. Scatter fresh parsley over the top. Serve over egg noodles, mashed potatoes, or buttered rice.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 420 | Protein: 38g | Fat: 26g | Carbs: 6g | Fiber: 0g | Sodium: 480mg