Bowden Turkey Time

Two Sunday's ago, hubby and I cooked our annual Turkey feast.  For the past 4 years, we've made this a tradition of having our own turkey {the same recipe each year} and delish sides around Thanksgiving since we always travel down south to spend the actual day with my fam.  Last year, we embarked on this journey the weekend after Thanksgiving but this year, we simply couldn't wait!  A BIG part of the timing this year was that Dylan's company gave each employee their own 14 pound bird!  Yup, you read correctly....GAVE! What a generous way to show thanks and appreciation to your employees! 

Our turkey recipe is from Epicurious.  I posted about it last year as well.  It's called Pancetta~Sage Turkey with Pancetta~Sage gravy and my friends, it is phenomenal.  We like to think of it as an Italian spin on traditional turkey. A nice alternative to your standard American turkey recipes though those are all great in their own right.  We just like to mix it up!  I will admit this is quite a process but is soooo worth the end result.  Utilizing prep time and making the butter the night before is a great way to lessen the load on actual T~day or whenev you choose to make it.  : )

The full recipe is found {here} and of course our take on it below in pics.  Hope you try it! It will not disappoint.

Ingredients out in front of you of course!!  Side note: We let our turkey thaw for 2 days.  No brining involved.  Start with the butter first.  Again, this can be made the day before and stored in the fridge.

Pancetta-Sage Butter:

• 4 garlic cloves, peeled
• 4 ounces thinly sliced pancetta, chopped
• 1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons minced shallot
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
• 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

Note:  I do the processing a bit different from the recipe so there are enough ingredients in the processor at the beginning that the pancetta won't stick to the blade.  As seen below, I help out the ole processor even more by rough chopping the pancetta before throwing it in with the rest of the ingredients.  Once everything is in, keep pulsing until you get a creamy mixture. 



The final butter product.  You'll use every last drop to rub all over the turkey.

 

Turkey:

• 1 14- to 16-pound turkey, rinsed, patted dry inside and out
• 8 fresh sage sprigs
• 4 fresh rosemary sprigs
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cups Turkey Stock {or water and turkey stock}

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. 


Turkey from Dylan's company!



Salt and Pepper the bird first.  Hubby enjoyed this part.



Next, rub the butter mixture all over the turkey



Drizzle olive oil over the entire turkey.  This helps it to brown and crisp nicely.

 

I add two cups of the turkey stock {store bought} to the pan. 



Tuck in the sprigs of rosemary and sage into the cavity and pop into the oven on the lowest rack.

 

A turkey of this size takes about 3 hours to cook so this is a great time to prep and make other side dishes and set the table.  At least that's what I did.  Hubby, of course, enjoyed some play time with miss Abbey.



Abbey still has not quite mastered the art of "drop" upon returning her toys from fetching them : )
But that's a~okay because she's so darn cute!



 

Meanwhile, I set the table...tada! We like a simple tablescape most of the time.  Nothing fussy.


Next up, I made some deviled eggs which we can't seem to get enough of and also prepped the rolls {more info on that recipe later...it's a Pioneer Woman recipe}.



Tip for the rolls: Always cover the dough with a kitchen towel and sit in a warm place to allow them to rise.

 

Once they've risen, pat with butter and add rosemary and sea salt and keep them out until ready to pop into the oven.

Next up, I prepped the ingredients for the gravy while Dylan made homemade mashed potatoes. Yummm!



I chopped the pancetta and shallots and stuck them into small baggies so they were good to go when the turkey was done.

 

Gravy:

• 1/2 cup diced thinly sliced pancetta
• 1/4 cup chopped shallots
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 3 cups Turkey Stock
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh sage

After the turkey has cooked enough to reach an internal temp of 165 degrees, take it out of the roasting pan and put onto rack or platter and tent with foil.  This allow all those juices to distribute and keep the turkey super tender and moist!  Pour the pan juices into a measuring cup and let the fat rise to the top.  You will use two tbsps or so of this fat to cook the pancetta as seen below.



Cook until crisp and light brown then add the chopped shallots



Add flour and whisk quickly



Add white wine, the turkey stock and rest of the pan juices and keep a whisking!



Finish up with fresh chopped rosemary and sage

Pour into a gravy boat!   

Time to dig in!!

As I mentioned, actual Thanksgiving day and the weekend was spent with my sweet family in south Ga.  We enjoyed even more delicious food, lots of shopping, some fishing, and of course, lots of chatting and laughing.  Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving as well!  Now, time for the Christmas decorating to commence!!