Roast Turkey With Sage And Sherried Cider Giblet Gravy

Total Time: 3 hrs 50 mins Preparation Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 3 hrs 30 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 10
• 14 lbs turkey
• 1/2 lemon, cut into 2 wedges
• 7 large fresh sage sprigs
• 2 slices firm whole-wheat sandwich bread
• 1/2 granny smith apple, quartered lengthwise
• 1/2 onion, quartered lengthwise
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened (1/2 cup)
• 1 cup water
• 1 cup dry sherry
• 1 cup apple cider, preferably sparkling
• 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups turkey giblet stock or 2 cups chicken broth
• fresh sage sprig, garnish

Recipe

• 1 preheat oven to 425°f.
• 2 reserve neck and giblets (excluding liver) for making stock.
• 3 if you plan to use giblet turkey stock, start it now to use later for the gravy.
• 4 for turkey:.
• 5 rinse turkey and pat dry inside and out.
• 6 season turkey inside and out with salt and pepper and pack neck cavity with 1 lemon wedge, 1 sage sprig, and 1 bread slice.
• 7 fold neck skin under body and fasten with a skewer.
• 8 fill body cavity with apple, onion, 3 sage sprigs, and remaining lemon wedge and bread slice and truss turkey.
• 9 rub turkey with remaining 3 sage sprigs and arrange sprigs on a rack set in a roasting pan.
• 10 spread turkey with butter and arrange on rack in roasting pan.
• 11 roast turkey in middle of oven 30 minutes.
• 12 reduce temperature to 325°f and baste turkey with pan juices.
• 13 add water to roasting pan and roast turkey, basting every 20 minutes, 2 1/2 to 3 hours more, or until a meat thermometer inserted in fleshy part of a thigh registers 180° f and juices run clear when thigh is pierced.
• 14 transfer turkey to a heated platter, reserving juices in roasting pan, and discard string.
• 15 keep turkey warm, covered loosely with foil.
• 16 for gravy:.
• 17 skim fat from pan juices, reserving 1/4 cup fat, and on top of stove deglaze pan with sherry over moderately high heat, scraping up brown bits.
• 18 stir in cider.
• 19 bring sherry mixture to a boil and remove pan from heat.
• 20 in a heavy saucepan whisk together reserved fat and flour and cook roux over moderately low heat, whisking, 3 minutes.
• 21 add sherry mixture and 2 cups stock or broth in a stream, whisking to prevent lumping, and simmer, whisking occasionally, 10 minutes.
• 22 whisk in additional stock or broth to thin gravy if desired.
• 23 season gravy with salt and pepper and transfer to a heated gravy boat.
• 24 garnish turkey with sage.