Easy No Fuss Thanksgiving Turkey Food

EASY, NO FUSS THANKSGIVING TURKEY

Steps:

• If the turkey is frozen: Thaw in the fridge, 24 hours for every 5 pounds of Turkey. I like to give myself 1 extra day, just to be safe.
• Remove the thawed turkey from the fridge 1 hour before roasting, to let it come to room temperature.
• Adjust your oven rack so the turkey will sit in the center of the oven. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
• Make the herb butter by combining room temperature butter, minced garlic, salt, pepper, one tablespoon fresh chopped rosemary, one tablespoon fresh chopped thyme, and half a tablespoon of fresh chopped sage. (You'll use the remaining fresh herbs for stuffing inside the cavity of the turkey)
• Remove turkey from packaging and remove the neck and giblets from the inside the cavities of the bird. (Reserve them for gravy, if you want, or discard them). Pat the turkey very dry with paper towels.
• Season the cavity of the turkey with salt and pepper. Stuff it with the quartered lemon, onion and apple and leftover herbs.
• Use your fingers to loosen and lift the skin above the breasts (on the top of the turkey) and smooth a few tablespoons of the herb butter underneath.
• Tuck the wings of the turkey underneath the turkey and set the turkey on a roasting rack inside a roasting pan*.
• Microwave the remaining herb butter mixture for 30 seconds (it doesn't need to be completely melted--just really softened). Use a basting brush to brush the remaining herb butter all over the outside of the turkey, legs and wings.
• Roast at 325 degrees F for about 13-15 minutes per pound, or until internal temperature (inserted on middle of thigh and breast) reaches about 165 degrees.
• (I remove the turkey from the oven once it reaches 160 degrees. Then, I tent it with foil, and let it rest on the counter. It will continue cooking under the foil, to reach 165 degrees F.)
• ***Check the turkey about halfway through cooking, and once the skin gets golden brown, cover the top of the turkey with tinfoil, to protect the breast meat from overcooking. Alternately, you could start cooking the turkey with it tented in foil, then during the last hour or so of cooking you can take the foil off to let the turkey brown.
• Allow turkey to rest for 20-30 minutes before carving. https://tastesbetterfromscratch.com/how-to-carve-a-turkey/
• Reserve any drippings and juice remaining in your roasting pan to make turkey gravy.

NO-BASTE, NO-BOTHER ROASTED TURKEY

Steps:

• Adjust the oven racks so the covered roasting pan fit easily inside. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F.
• Rub the butter on the outside and in the cavity of the turkey. Sprinkle the salt and pepper on the inside and the outside of the turkey. Put the celery, onion and carrot in the cavity. Place the turkey, breast-side up, in a large roasting pan. Pour the boiling water into the pan. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and put the pan in the oven.
• Start a timer when the oven temperature returns to 500 degrees F. Bake for exactly 1 hour and turn off the oven. Do not open the oven door! Leave the turkey in the oven until the oven completely cools; this may take 4 to 6 hours. Reserve the pan juices and refrigerate the turkey if it will not be served soon after roasting.

WORLD'S SIMPLEST THANKSGIVING TURKEY

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Pull the neck and giblets out of the cavity; ditch the liver and save the rest of the giblets for gravy. Dry the turkey with paper towels, then season inside and out with salt and pepper. Fill the turkey with aromatics like chopped onions, carrots, apples and herbs, then place breast-side up in a roasting pan and brush with melted butter. Tent with foil and roast for 2 hours (for a 10- to 12-pound turkey; add an extra 15 minutes per pound for larger birds). Remove the foil, baste with more melted butter and crank the oven to 425 degrees F. Roast for another hour or until the meat at the thigh registers 165 degrees F. Let rest while you make the gravy.

THANKSGIVING NO-TURKEY TURKEY

Steps:

• Tear bread into 1-inch cubes and place into a large bowl. Let bread dry in the bowl, uncovered, at least 8 hours.
• Melt margarine in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in carrots, celery, and onion. Cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned golden brown, about 10 minutes. Scrape onion mixture into the bowl with the dried bread; season with parsley, sage, and pepper. Whisk egg replacer, water, and vegetable broth in a small bowl until smooth. Pour over bread cubes and gently fold until evenly mixed. Let stand 30 minutes to allow bread to absorb the liquid.
• Preheat an oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and coat with nonstick cooking spray.
• Brush seitan with gravy on both sides; arrange overlapping slices on foil in a row, mounding in the center. Press stuffing mixture around seitan to cover. Wet hands lightly and press into a neat oval. Roll pastry sheets out to 1/16-inch thickness; arrange, overlapping slightly, to make a large rectangle. Seal edges with dabs of cold water. Drape pastry over mound; trim excess away from bottom. Use scraps to cut out decorative shapes (leaves, apples, etc). Attached with dabs of cold water.
• Bake until the pastry in deep golden brown, 1 to 1 1/4 hours. Cover the pastry with aluminum foil if it begins to brown too much.

NO-FUSS HERB-ROASTED TURKEY & STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. With fingers, carefully loosen skin from turkey breast; rub butter under the skin. In a small bowl, mix salt, sage, rosemary and pepper; rub over outside and inside of turkey. Tuck wings under turkey; tie drumsticks together., Sprinkle flour into oven bag; shake to coat. Place in a shallow roasting pan; add turkey to bag, breast side up. Cut six 1/2-in. slits in top of bag; close with tie provided. Bake 2-1/4 to 2-3/4 hours or until a thermometer inserted in thickest part of thigh reads 170°-175°., Meanwhile, for stuffing, in a large skillet, heat butter over medium-high heat. Add onion and celery; cook and stir until tender. Transfer to a large bowl. Stir in stuffing cubes, soup, broth and egg. Transfer to a greased 11x7-in. baking dish., Bake, covered, 30 minutes. Uncover; bake 10-15 minutes longer or until lightly browned., Remove turkey from bag to serving platter; tent with foil. Let stand 20 minutes before carving. Serve with stuffing.