Turkey Day

Before:

After:

I couldn't believe it myself, but a flock of wild turkeys actually passed through our yard on Thanksgiving Day. No, in my zeal for local cuisine I did not actually run out into the yard and take one of these beautiful birds down, but I did end up cooking a delicious meal that celebrates an often forgotten animal. Now sadly, I ended up hosting Thanksgiving somewhat last-minute, and I couldn't find anywhere that still had local or heritage breeds of turkeys available, so the bird in this photo doesn't quite measure up to what I had envisioned. Now that I am reading The Omnivore's Dilemma, I am getting much more interested in finding local, grass-fed sources of meat and poultry. Eat Wild is a great resource for finding local grass-fed producers all over the U.S., and has a lot of useful information for interested readers. I found Chestnut Farms, a Massachusetts source for beef, lamb, pork, and poultry, that does a meat CSA, which will deliver a monthly allotment of meat to a variety of locations all around MA for customer pick-up. Sean and I are hoping to test-run some of their products from the farmer's market this winter, and will probably join the CSA in their next cycle, starting in June.

Still, even though my turkey was probably far from ideally raised this year, I thought I would share a delicious recipe for roast turkey and gravy, that goes amazingly well with garlic mashed potatoes on the side (because come on, what else are you going to do with all of that gravy?). Next year, I look forward to an even more home-grown Thanksgiving!

Herb-Roasted Turkey and Gravy (from Cook's Country)

Make sure to brine a natural turkey before going forward with this recipe (a frozen "self-basting" turkey injected with a salt solution does not need to be brined).

For the turkey:

• 1 (12-14 pound) turkey, thawed, giblets discarded
  
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 2 tablespoons dried herbes de Provence
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chicken boullion (Better Than Boullion recommended)
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 2 onions, chopped
• 1 carrot, peeled and chopped
• 1 celery rib, chopped
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 cup white wine

For the gravy:

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 5 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary
• Salt and pepper

Directions:

1. For the turkey: Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Pat turkey dry inside and out with paper towels. Using fork, beat butter, herbs, garlic, zest, boullion, and pepper until combined.
2. Using the handle of a wooden spoon gently loosen the skin from the breast meat. Spoon half of butter mixture under skin of turkey, and rub remaining butter all over the skin on the outside and inside the turkey cavity.
3. Scatter vegetables in bottom of large roasting pan, then add broth and wine. Tuck wings behind back and arrange turkey on V-rack set inside roasting pan. Roast until internal temperature of breast reaches 165 degrees and thigh registers 170-175 degrees, 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Transfer turkey to cutting board and let rest for 30 minutes.
4. For the gravy: Carefully strain contents of roasting pan into large measuring cup. Let liquid settle so that fat separates, then skim fat from surface. If necessary, add enough water to measure 4 cups. Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and whisk constantly until honey-colored, about 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in strained juices. Bring to boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Off heat, stir in herbs and season with salt and pepper. Carve turkey and serve with herb gravy.