Turkey, baby carrots and tarragon casserole

Turkey is high in tryptophan, an amino acid and vitamins B3 & B6 & zinc, which help to convert tryptophan into serotonin, the feel good transmitter. So if you begin to feel blue or just want a lift, tuck into a good serve of turkey and see your mood turn around. It will also help you get a good night’s sleep.

Ingredients

Serves 4

2 turkey legs
6 baby carrots, peeled, top & tailed
1 leek cut lengthwise, remove base and top 1/3. Wash well.
2-3 cloves garlic, squashed with a knife
2 tblspns fresh tarragon, chopped
2 tblspns apple cider vinegar
1⁄2-1 tspn celtic sea salt
cracked black peppercorns to taste

Method

1. Cook in a “Romertopf”, an earthenware casserole dish with a lid. I recently discovered these cooking vessels. They require no oil or liquid and are a great healthy way to cook all sorts of meats, with the resulting meat juicy and tender. Fill the dish with water and soak for 20 minutes whilst preparing the ingredients. Remove the skin from the turkey legs.

2. Preheat oven to 200 celsius.  Cut the leek in 5cm lengths & if using larger carrots, into 10cm pieces. Empty water out of dish.

3. Add turkey legs, carrots, leeks, garlic and tarragon. Drizzle over apple cider vinegar and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover with lid and place in oven. Cook for 90-120 minutes, until meat easily comes away from the bone.

4. Serve with a whole baby potato with skin on, sugar snap peas and asparagus, steamed for 3-5minutes. Spoon cooking juices over turkey and veges.

Note: If you are using a normal casserole dish with lid, cook at 170C for 90 minutes and add 1⁄2 -1cup of low salt chicken stock.