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Hi folks, time really flies and it is getting closer to the end of  2009. Guess what? Thanksgiving is just around the corner. That means holiday is here and time for a gathering with family and friends. However since our family does not live with us in the United States, my roomies and I have decided to host an early Thanksgiving dinner for friends gathering this year.

Every Thanksgiving I am responsible to prepare the main dish which is the turkey. This year I’ve prepared the Rosemary Roasted Turkey with stuffing such as sausages, potatoes, carrots and apples. Also I’ve prepared the Mushroom Gravy to serve with the turkey.

Preparing the Turkey is very time consuming, you will have to start the process 2-3 days before roasting. First, you have to thaw the frozen turkey in the fridge 2-3 days based on the weight. A day before roasting you may want to marinate the turkey overnight. On the day of roasting, it will occupy most of your time and oven space. Therefore, it is suggested to prepare other dishes a day earlier to avoid time delay.

While roasting the turkey, my girlfriend and my roommates have also prepared few dishes to complete the Thanksgiving dinner. My girlfriend has made the Potatoes Au Gratin with Bacon as a side dish and the Sweet Potato Pie with Marshmallow Meringue for dessert. While my roommate has prepared a simple salad for appetizer and Spaghetti with fish in marinara sauce. Seriously, we have spent the whole day in kitchen to prepare all these food. Although it was tiring, we really enjoyed the cooking process and our friends are satisfied with the food as well. We really had a great time together and hopefully there will be a next gathering soon.

Here I wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving! Enjoy!

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Ingredients:
1 (12~14 lbs) frozen young turkey

For Marinating:
1 stick butter (soften)
3 sprigs rosemary (chopped)
1 whole garlic (chopped)
3 tbsp ginger (chopped)
3 tbsp shallots (chopped)

Preparation: Marinate Turkey

1. Remove thawed turkey from package and remove giblets and liver. Rinse turkey inside out. Place turkey in a aluminum foil pan or roasting pan.
2. Combine well softened butter, chopped garlic, ginger, shallots and rosemary in a small bowl.
3. Use finger to carefully loosen the skin around the turkey. Rub rosemary garlic butter under the skin and outside of the skin of turkey, then rub remaining marinade in the cavity.
4. Cover the turkey with foil and marinate overnight in the fridge.

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Ingredients:
For Stuffing:
1 italian sausage (sliced in 1/4″ pieces)
1 red apple (diced in 1″ cubes)
1 large onion (diced in 1″ cubes)
2 carrots (diced in 1″ cubes)
2 potatoes (diced in 1″ cubes)
5 white mushroom (thin sliced)
1 sprig rosemary (chopped)
1 tbsp parsley (chopped)
salt and pepper

For Basting and Turkey Injection:
1/3 stick butter (melted)
3 garlic cloves (minced ; roasted with melted butter for 30sec in microwave)
1/4 onions (minced; roasted with melted butter for 30sec in microwave)
2 sprigs rosemary (chopped)
1 cup chicken broth
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
Turkey Pan Juice (use turkey pan juice to baste turkey after 45 mins of roasting)
Honey (use honey to brush turkey at last 15mins of roasting)

Cooking method: Roast Turkey and Stuffing

1. Preheat the oven at 400°F.
2. Take out the marinated turkey from the fridge at room temperature for half an hour.
3. Meanwhile, prepare all chopped stuffing ingredients in another baking pan, season with salt and pepper and drizzle olive oil over ingredients.
4. Use 1/4 of the stuffing to fill the body cavity. Cover the remaining stuffing with foil and set aside to bake later with the turkey.
5. Brush the whole turkey with basting stock (without turkey pan juice). Fill marinade needle with basting stocks (avoiding chopped garlic and onions) and inject marinade into thickest parts of turkey such as breast,  thighs, drumsticks, wings and back.
6. Cover the turkey drumstick tips and wing tips with foil. Tent the whole turkey with foil. Roast turkey for 45 minutes.
7. After 45 minutes, baste turkey with pan juices. Continue roasting , basting every 45 minutes, 1 1/2 hours more for a total of 2  1/4 hours.
8. Reduce heat to 325 °F. Remove tent foil, baste the entire turkey with pan juices and roast for another 30 minutes uncovered. Finally brush the whole turkey with honey and roast for the last 15 minutes until golden brown. Check when the internal temperature of the turkey reaches 180°F  means the turkey is fully cooked.
9. During the last 45 minutes of roasting, you can bake the stuffing at the same time with the turkey for 30 minutes until tender.
10. Ready to serve Rosemary Roasted Turkey with stuffing. Make gravy as below.

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Ingredients:
For gravy:
1 cup turkey pan juices (from roasted turkey, remove excess fat oil for cooking)
3 garlic clove (minced)
1 shallots (minced)
1/2 package mushroom
1/2 cup red wine
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp soy source
1 tbsp parsley (chopped)
1 sprigs rosemary (chopped)
1 tsp sugar
1/2 cup milk or cream
1 tbsp cornstarch (dissolve in 1 tbsp water)
salt and pepper to taste

Cooking method: For gravy

1. Extract 1 cup of turkey pan juices for gravy use, remove excess fat oil.
2. Heat 1 tbsp butter in pan over medium, stir fry garlic and shallots until tender. Add in mushroom and stir until tender.
3. Add in red wine and cook till reduced to half.
4. Add in turkey juices, soy sauce, parsley, rosemary, sugar and cream, bring to boil, whisking often.
5. Finally add in dissolved cornstarch, whisk until gravy thickens. Season gravy with salt and pepper, then stir in vinegar to taste.
6. Serve gravy with Turkey.

Our Ultimate Thanksgiving Feast!

Hope you enjoy your Thanksgiving celebration.