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Preparation (can be done the night before or the morning of the dinner)
Turkey: Remove neck and giblets from the cavity of the turkey and discard or freeze for another recipe. Wash turkey, pat dry. Rub with the vegetable oil or melted butter, season with GALENA STREET. Place in a large roasting pan with a rack, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to cook.
Potatoes: Peel and quarter potatoes. Place in a kettle of water large enough to cover them and refrigerate. Change the water in the morning.
Cooking
Turkey: Preheat the oven to 375°. Uncover the turkey and place in the oven. Roast for 20 minutes, then reduce oven temperature to 325°. Baste the turkey every 15 minutes or so. A turkey takes roughly 15 minutes per pound to roast; a 12-lb. bird will take about 3 hours. We tend to find turkey cooks faster than we think, so we rely on a watchful eye and a meat thermometer which should read 160° inserted in the thick thigh meat. The potatoes will hold nicely if the turkey needs more time, and the turkey will stay warm if it is done first. If the turkey is done first, just remove it from the oven, cover it and let it rest for 10 minutes minimum, and it will still be warm for up to 30 minutes.
Potatoes: 1 hour before dinner, fill a heavy 4-quart pot 2/3 full with water and bring to a rolling boil (this will take 10-15 minutes). Add the potatoes. Bring back to a slow boil over medium-high heat. Once the potatoes are boiling, they will be done in 15-18 minutes (fairly tender when pierced with a fork). Drain the potatoes (reserve the water for the gravy) and return to the pot. Cover and return to the stove with the heat off for a few minutes so the potatoes will dry. Add GARLIC, PEPPER, sour cream, milk and salt, then mash with a hand masher or beat with a hand mixer. Cover the potatoes tightly and leave on the back burner of the stove until ready to serve. Remove the turkey from the oven when the thermometer has popped out, the juices run clear when pierced in the thigh with a knife, or a meat thermometer reads 160°. Place turkey on a platter and let rest for 10 minutes before carving.
Gravy: A true holiday turkey produces a whole lot of flavorful drippings and fat; it is not unusual to get 2-3 cups of liquid from the pan. If this is the lucky situation you face, pour all the drippings into a large measuring cup, let the fat come to the top, carefully pour off as much of the fat as you can, and proceed to use the rest of the juices in place of some of the 3 cups of the potato cooking water. Place the roasting pan on the stove top burners over medium heat. Add 1 cup of the potato cooking water to the pan, stir, and scrape vigorously to get all the drippings and browned bits dissolved. Then, pour the stock through a small strainer into a saucepan. Bring the stock to a rapid boil and reduce the liquid by a third, which takes about 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low, so the liquid is just simmering. Drizzle in the ARROWROOT-water slurry, stirring constantly (make sure the gravy is not boiling). The gravy will thicken rapidly; you may not need all of the thickener to reach the consistency you like.
Prep. time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: several hours total
Yield: 8-12
Nutritional Information for turkey:
Servings 12; Serving Size 10 ounces (305g); Calories 650; Calories from fat 280; Total fat 32g; Cholesterol 245mg; Sodium 510mg; Carbohydrate 1g; Dietary Fiber 0g.
Nutritional Information for gravy:
Servings 12; Servings 12; Serving Size 1/4 cup (69g); Calories 40; Calories from fat 40; Total fat 4.5g; Cholesterol 5mg; Sodium 100mg; Carbohydrate 1g; Dietary Fiber 0g.
Nutritional Information for potatoes:
Servings 12; Serving Size 1/2 cup (123g); Calories 100; Calories from fat 10; Total fat 1g; Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium 110mg; Carbohydrate 21g; Dietary Fiber 1g.
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