Turkey Breast With Apricot Sausage Stuffing - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 large turkey breast (preferably bone-in about 6-7 pounds)
14 -15 ounces pork sausage
1 small onion, chopped
2 1/4 cups coarse dry breadcrumbs (do not use fine bread crumbs)
3/4 cup pecans, chopped
3/4 - 1 cup dried apricot, chopped
1/4 cup melted butter
1/3 cup chicken broth
2 stalks celery, chopped
1/4 teaspoon dried sage (crush between fingers, can use more to taste)
salt & freshly ground black pepper (to taste)

Preparation

Set oven to 350 degrees F.
Prepare and butter a casserole dish just large enough to hold the breast.
Crumble the sausage slightly,and brown in a skillet over medium heat with onion; drain any fat then place in a bowl.
Combine the pork sausage with next 8 ingredients, then season with salt and pepper to taste; mix well to combine.
Gently loosen the skin from turkey in the neck area to make a large \"pocket\" to stuff.
Stuff in as much stuffing as you can with sausage mixture thensecure with toothpicks.
Place the remaining sausage (if any) into a small baking dish, and during the last 30 minutes of the turkey breast baking time, bake the remaining stuffing for about 20-25 minutes, or until heated through.
To cook the turkey breast: place the breast skin-side up on a rack in roasting pan.
Brush with melted butter, and season with salt and pepper.
Bake for about 2 to 2-1/2 hours or until a thermometer reaches 170 degrees F (I like to remove a little sooner as the temperature will rise after removing from the oven).
Let stand for 15-20 minutes before slicing.