Basic Roast Turkey
 INGREDIENTS
1 12- to 14-pound turkey, giblets removed
3 carrots, roughly chopped
1 stalk celery, roughly chopped
2 medium yellow onions, cut into wedges
6 tablespoons tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, or olive oil
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3 navel oranges, cut into wedges (optional)
1 bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley or leaves from 1 bunch celery (optional)
Kitchen string (optional)
METHOD
Heat oven to 425° F.
Rinse the turkey inside and out and pat it dry with paper towels. Place the wings underneath the body. If desired, tie the drumsticks together using kitchen string.
Place the carrots, celery, and onions in a metal roasting pan. Transfer the turkey to a wire rack and place it on top of the vegetables. Drizzle the skin with the butter or oil and, using your fingers, spread it evenly. Season with the salt and pepper. Roast the turkey, uncovered, until browned, 30 to 45 minutes.
Add 1 cup cold water to pan. Cover the turkey loosely with foil. Reduce oven temperature to 350° F. Roast until a thermometer inserted in a thigh registers 180° F, about 2 hours total.
Let the turkey rest for at least 30 minutes before carving. Garnish with the orange wedges and parsley or celery leaves (if using). If making gravy, reserve the juices in the roasting pan.
Maple-Glazed Turkey with Mushrooms and Sage
INGREDIENTS
2 tbsp sunflower oil
6 Fresh Turkey Breast Steaks
250g organic chestnut mushrooms, cleaned and halved
15g pack fresh sage leaves, ½ roughly chopped, ½ left whole
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
5 tbsp whisky, such Jack Daniel's Tennessee Whiskey (optional)
4 tbsp Waitrose No.1 Medium Maple Syrup
150ml chicken stock
METHOD
Heat the oil in a large frying pan with a lid. Add the turkey steaks and fry for 6-8 minutes, turning occasionally, until almost cooked through (you may need to do this in batches).
- Stir the mushrooms, chopped sage and garlic into the pan, cover and cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Pour in the Jack Daniel's, if using, and boil rapidly to reduce the liquid by half. Add the maple syrup and chicken stock, return to the boil and simmer for 4-5 minutes, until the liquid has reduced to a sticky glaze and the turkey is thoroughly cooked, the juices run clear and there is no pink meat. Season to taste and garnish with the remaining whole sage leaves. Serve with basmati and wild rice, and mini sweetcorn cobs (find them in the freezer cabinets).
Cook's tips
Don't overcrowd the pan when cooking the turkey, otherwise you will create too much steam and not get a rich brown colour. If cooking the steaks in batches, return them all to the pan before adding the mushrooms.
Roast turkey with bread sauce
INGREDIENTS
1 free-range turkey weighing 4kg/8lb 11oz
salt and freshly ground black pepper
175g/6oz unsalted or lightly salted butter
For the bread sauce
450ml/15fl oz full-cream milk
1 small onion
4 cloves
75-100g/3-4oz fresh white breadcrumbs
freshly grated nutmeg, to taste
40g/1½oz butter or 2 tbsp double cream
cayenne pepper, for sprinkling
You'll also need a large piece of butter muslin (available from good cook shops or fabric shops)
METHOD
1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Check that you have not left the plastic bag of giblets lurking inside the bird. Put the turkey in a large, deep roasting tin. Season generously all over with salt and pepper and massage the seasoning into the skin.
2. Melt the butter in a large saucepan. Fold the muslin in four and lower it into the melted butter, pushing it in so that it soaks up virtually all the butter.
3. Lift out the butter-soaked muslin and lay it over the turkey, making sure that it completely covers the breast and upper thighs.
4. Pour about 300ml/½ pint water into the roasting tin and slide it into the oven. Cook for approximately 3 hours 20 minutes, basting the bird approximately every 30 minutes with the pan juices.
5. Test that the turkey is properly cooked in just the same way as you would a chicken. Pierce the thickest part of the thigh with a skewer. If the juices run clear then the turkey is done. If they are pink, slide it straight back into the oven for a further 15 minutes before testing again and continue to do this until they do run clear.
6. Once it's done, transfer the turkey to a large serving dish, discard the muslin and leave in a warm place to rest for at least half an hour. Cover with foil to stop the meat going cold.
7. While the turkey is cooking, make the bread sauce. Pour the milk into a heavy-based saucepan. Stick the four cloves into the onion, add to the milk and bring very, very slowly up to the boil, so that the milk has plenty of time to absorb the flavours of the onion and the cloves.
8. Remove the onion and cloves and stir enough breadcrumbs into the milk to give a thick sauce. Season to taste with nutmeg and salt. Stir in the butter or cream, adjust the seasoning, then spoon into a warm serving bowl, sprinkle with a little cayenne pepper and place on the table. If making in advance, leave to cool, then cover with cling film and store in the fridge for up to three days. Reheat thoroughly before serving. Sprinkle with the cayenne pepper just before serving.
Turkey and Sun-Dried Tomato Pizzas
INGREDIENTS
2 cups shredded turkey
1 ready-to-bake pizza dough
3 tablespoons sun-dried tomato padte
1/2 pound thinly sliced mozzarella
1/4 cup chopped basil leaves
METHOD
Heat oven to 400º F. Bake ready-to-bake pizza dough for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and spread with sun-dried tomato paste (such as Sonoma Dried Tomato Tapenade). Layer with shredded turkey and mozzarella. Bake 5 minutes more or until the cheese is melted and the crust is golden. Remove from oven and top chopped basil leaves.
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