Roast Turkey w/ Herbed Bread Stuffing and Gravy
- 1 (12 - 14 lb) turkey
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- herbed gred stuffing (see instructions)
- 3/4 (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup chicken stock
- 1/4 cup water
- 4 cups turkey giblet stock (see instructions)
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- optional garnish: fresh sage, rosemary and thyme sprigs
Put a rack in middle of oven and preheat oven to 425 degrees. butter a 3 qt shallow baking dish.
Rinse turkey inside and out and pat dry. Season inside and out with salt and pepper. Loosely fill neck cavity with stuffing, then fold neck skin under body and fasten with a skewer. Loosely fill body cavity with stuffing. Tie drumsticks together with kitchen string and, if desired, secure wings with skewers for a nicer appearance. Transfer remaining stuffing to baking dish and refrigerate, covered.
Put turkey on a rack set in a roasting pan. Roast for 30 minutes.
Melt 4 tablespoons butter. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees and pur melted butter over turkey. Roast turkey, basting with pan juices every 20 minutes, until thermometer inserted in center of stuffing in body cavity registers 165 degrees (thigh will be about 180 degrees), 3 to 3 1/2 hours more. Transfer turkey to a heated platter, leaving juices in pan; set pan aside. Remove skewers and string. Transfer stuffing from turkey cavities to a serving dish and keep warm, covered. Let turkey stand for at least 30 minutes and up to 45 minutes.
Increase oven temperature to 375 degrees. Stir together chicken stock and water and drizzle over reserved stuffing in baking dish. Dot stuffing with remaining butter and bake for 40 minutes: for moist stuffing, bake covered entire time; for less moist stuffing with a slightly crisp top, uncover for 10 minutes.
About 1 minutes before Serving, make the Gravy:
Bring turkey stock to a simmer in a medium saucepan. Skim fat from pan juices and reserve 1/4 cup fat. Set roasting pan over two burners, add 1 cup stock and deglaze ban by boiling over moderately high heat, stirring and scraping up brown bits, for 1 minute. Add pan juices to remaining 3 cups stock and bring to a simmer.
Meanwhile, whisk together reserved fat and flour in a large heavy saucepan and cook over moderately low heat, whisking, for 3 minutes to make a roux. Add hot stock to roux in a fast stream, whisking constantly to prevent lumps, and simmer, whisking occasionally, until thickened, about 10 minutes. Stir in any juices accumulated on turkey platter and season gravy with salt and pepper.
Garish platter with herb sprigs, if desired. Carve turkey and serve with gravy and stuffing.