Buttery Turkey Breast With Cornbread "Croutons" and Roasted Cipollini

Preparation

With herb butter melting under the skin and the aroma of sage, leeks, and white wine in the air, this turkey breast with cornbread croutons and roasted cipollini onions could take the place of a Thanksgiving dinner for a smaller crew.

PREPARE THE TURKEY

1. Pat turkey dry with paper towels. Rub 1 ½ tablespoons salt all over the turkey inside and out (3/4 teaspoon per pound). Cover and refrigerate overnight. Bring turkey to room temperature for 1 hour before roasting.

MAKE THE HERB BUTTER

1. Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a HexClad 10" Hybrid Fry Pan over medium-low heat. Add leeks and a large pinch of salt. Partially cover the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until leeks are very tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool. Place remaining stick of butter in a medium bowl and stir in the cooked leeks, parsley, sage, rosemary, ginger, and ½ teaspoon each salt and pepper.

ROAST THE TURKEY

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Combine the cipollini onions and wine in the bottom of the HexClad Small Roasting Pan. Place the rack over top and arrange the turkey skin side up on the rack. Pat turkey dry all over with paper towels. Loosen the skin on the turkey breast and rub all of the stuffing butter underneath the skin, covering the meat as evenly as possible.
2. Roast for one hour, and rotate pan front to back. Continue roasting until a meat thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the breast reads 165ºF, another 35 to 45 minutes. 
3. Transfer the turkey and the onions onto a tray and strain all pan drippings through a fine mesh sieve into a HexClad 2QT Hybrid Saucepan. Spoon fat from the surface of the drippings and coat the bottom of the roasting pan with the fat.
4. While the turkey is resting, add cornbread pieces to the roasting pan and toss with the fat. Bake until toasted, tossing halfway through, about 15 minutes. 
5. Bring the pan drippings to a simmer and skim off any fat or impurities that float to the surface.  When turkey has rested for at least 20 minutes, carve and serve with cornbread, cipollini onions in their skins, and turkey jus.