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Turkey & Stuffing

Stuffing

4 cups cornbread, diced and dried

3 cups biscuits, diced and dried

4 eggs

1 1/2 Tbsp. sage, chopped

2 1/2 cups chicken stock

salt & pepper

Stuffing - Vegetable Bowl

1 stick butter

1 onion, diced

3 stalks celery, diced

Stuffing - Meat Bowl

1 stick butter

Turkey

20lb. Turkey

Salt & Pepper

1 lb. bacon

4 apples, sliced into discs

toothpicks

10 ft. string

Seasoned Butter Bowl

1 stick butter, softened

1 Tbsp. rosemary, chopped

1 Tbsp. thyme, chopped
1 Tbsp. sage, chopped

1 Tbsp. chives, chopped

1 tsp. salt

Vegetable Bowl

3 carrots, chopped

2 onions, chopped

4 celery stalks, chopped

olive oil

salt & pepper

Gravy

1 batch Thanksgiving Gravy

or

Turkey pan drippings

4 Tbsp. butter

1/2 cup flour

salt to taste

or

Both

At least a week in advance, make batches of Cornbread, Biscuits and Thanksgiving Gravy. Dice the cornbread and biscuits and leave uncovered on a countertop for at least a week.  If you don't have a week, put the diced bread, uncovered, in an oven set low for 15 minutes.

Stuffing.  Set up the Stuffing Vegetable and Meat Bowls.  Empty the Vegetable Bowl into a large skillet over low heat and saute until the vegetables are soft.  Transfer the vegetable mixture to a large bowl.  Using the same skillet, do the same thing with the Meat Bowl.  Add the browned meat to the vegetable bowl.  Add the cornbread, biscuits, eggs and sage to the vegetable bowl and mix well.  Stir in the chicken stock.  The stuffing should be moist.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Transfer to a covered container and refrigerate overnight.

Turkey.  Set up the Seasoned Butter and Vegetable Bowls.  Stir the Seasoned Butter Bowl until the contents are well mixed.  Use your fingers to gently loosen the skin over the breast and thighs.  Spread the butter mixture under the loosened skin and massage to spread evenly.  Season the inside of the turkey with a liberal amount of salt and pepper.  Fill the body and neck cavities of the turkey loosely with the cooled stuffing.  If you have leftover stuffing, bake it in a small casserole dish alongside the turkey.  Use the string to truss the turkey.  Season the outside of the bird with more salt and pepper.

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Pour the contents of the Vegetable Bowl into a large roasting pan.  Toss until the vegetables are coated with olive oil and evenly seasoned with salt and pepper.  Place the turkey on top of the vegetables (or on a rack on top of the vegetables) and put it in the oven.  Keep an eye on it.  Drape the turkey with bacon as needed to control the browning.  Use apple slices and a toothpick to cover any areas getting too brown.  After the first hour, baste every 20 minutes or so with pan drippings.  Cook until the thickest part of the turkey thigh registers 160 degrees (about 4 hours).  Remove to a cutting board and allow the turkey to rest, uncovered, for 30 minutes.

Gravy.  After cooking the turkey, allow the pan drippings to cool until you can pour it into a ziplock without melting the bag.  Strain out the cooked vegetables.  Pour the drippings into the ziplock.  Allow the fat to separate and rise to the top.  Use scissors to snip the bottom corner of the ziplock and drain the "good stuff" into a bowl.  Throw away the fat.  Melt the butter in a large skillet until it stops bubbling.  Add the flower and stir continuously until the bubling stops.  Pour in the pan drippings a little at a time, stirring continuously, to make a gravy.  Keep adding pan drippings and stirring until the thickness is right.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Our comments:  Plan on serving Biscuits and Cornbread sometime at least a week before Thanksgiving.  That way you have leftovers for the stuffing.  It never seemed right to leave the chopped bread on the counter uncovered for a week, but you want "crispy critters" (some people leave it out much longer ... Don Lindsley).  If you have a frozen turkey, transfer it from the freezer to the refrigerator a week in advance to thaw.  Allyson thinks it's gross, but I like to take the turkey out of the refrigerator right before bed the night before Thanksgiving so it is at room temperature first thing in the morning.  You can substitute a pint of pureed raw oysters and whole milk for an equal amount of chicken stock if you want oyster stuffing.  If you want to know how to truss a turkey, look at the Roast Chicken recipe.  Thanks to Jan Hunsaker for the ziplock trick to separate the fat from the pan drippings!

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