Roasted Turkey with Spiced Cranberry, Apple and Sage Stuffing

Serves 10

5kg Delicious Free Range Fosse Meadows Turkey

4 tbsp rapeseed oil

Sea salt and black pepper

Spiced Cranberry, Apple and Sage Stuffing

50g butter

1 tbsp rapeseed oil

1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped

½ tsp mixed spice

1 clove garlic, peeled and finely chopped

200g fresh breadcrumbs

2 eating apples

250g cranberries

50g dried apple, cut into small pieces

2 tbsp fresh sage leaves, chopped

750g sausage meat

2 tbsp chopped parsley

Grated zest of a small orange

1 large egg, beaten

8 rashers rindless streaky bacon

Sea salt and black pepper

Preheat oven to 230°C/Gas Mark 8

Remove turkey giblets and reserve. Rinse the turkey inside and out and dry well.

Place the turkey in a large roasting pan, brush the turkey generously with rapeseed oil and season with sea salt and black pepper and cover with foil.

Place the prepared turkey in the pre-heated oven and cook at this temperature for the first 30 minutes. Then, lower the oven temperature to 180°C/Gas Mark 4 and cook for approximately 30 minutes per kilo, basting every hour.

To prepare the stuffing, heat the butter and rapeseed oil until the butter has melted. Add the onion and mixed spice, fry gently until well softened but not browned. Stir in the garlic and breadcrumbs and season well with sea salt and black pepper. Remove from the heat and place in a bowl, leave to cool.

Peel the apples, cut into quarters, remove the core and cut into small cubes. Mix the cubed apples, cranberries, dried apple, sage, sausage meat, parsley and orange zest with the onion mixture, season well with sea salt and black pepper using clean hands and then mix in the beaten egg. The mixture should be quite firm, with wet hands, mould the stuffing into balls the size of a golf ball or make a stuffing cake.

Place the stuffing balls on a greased baking sheet and bake in the pre-heated oven for about 20 minutes, until golden brown and cooked through.

To make the stuffing cake; take a 18-20cm spring form cake tin and grease with a little rapeseed oil.  Arrange the bacon slices in the tin, leaving a 5cm strip on the base, then lay them up around the sides, let the excess hang over the edge. Carefully fill the tin with the stuffing mixture, making sure it is level on top.  Fold the bacon over the top of the stuffing, gathering and twisting the ends loosely over the centre.  Place the tin on a baking sheet to catch any juices that escape, then bake for 40-45 minutes until the top is golden.  Cool in the tin for 10 minutes. Before you turn out onto a serving plate, place some poached cranberries on top for decoration, cut into wedges and serve.

When the turkey is approximately 35 minutes before the end of cooking, remove the foil, drain off any of the excess fat and cook for a further 35 minutes or until golden brown.

Transfer the turkey to a platter and cover loosely with foil and leave to rest for 20-30 minutes.

Serve the turkey carved with stuffing balls or stuffing cake and warm homemade turkey gravy with Madeira.