Roast Turkey with Pears & Sage

My friends and I like to have a pre-Thanksgiving dinner with one another so we can enjoy each other's company and that of our families. It is also a great excuse to have two separate Thanksgiving dinners and prolong the delightful leftovers twice as long. I decided to go all out on the turkey this year and spent the entire week leading up to the dinner party researching various turkey-roasting methods. I decided to brine the turkey and roast it at a high temperature for the first 30 minutes of cooking to seal in the juices, then lower the heat a bit for the rest of the cooking time. I don't know if it was the brining or brief high cooking temperature or both, but everyone remarked on how juicy and moist the white meat was, which made me very, very happy. I really loved the pear aspect of the meal, it was slightly sweet but not too sweet, complementing the turkey meat in just the right way. And the pear-laced pan drippings made, honest to God, the best gravy I've ever had. I was also able to finally give my new Wusthof knife set a run on a solid block of meat, and...just...whoa. These made carving the turkey so, SO much easier. And chopping the onions was a dream! I just had to push down gently and it went right through them, no nasty sawing back and forth for eons with my old target brand knife set and using all my body weight to get the knife down though root vegetables which, looking back, could have resulted in the loss of many a finger if I wasn't more careful. Now that I have a quality set of knives and recently got a large sharpening stone, I'm never going back to the days of dull-blade cooking. It makes my prep and carving work faster, safer, and much, much less frustrating.

Now that I've wrapped up my knife-rant, I want to wish all of you the happiest of Thanksgivings and let you know that the thing I am most thankful for this year is you. Thank you for continuing to read my little side stories and participate in my life through your readership and comments. It it deeply appreciated.

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Ingredients:

Roast Turkey

1 Whole Turkey, innards removed

1 Cup Duck Fat or Butter

1 Teaspoon Sage

1/4 Teaspoon Thyme

1 Teaspoon Salt

1/4 Teaspoon Pepper

6 Bosc Pears, cut in half

1 Sweet Onion, diced

4 Cups Turkey or Chicken Broth

Pear Glaze

3/4 Cup White Wine

3/4 Cup Honey

3/4 Cup Turkey or Chicken Broth

1/2 Cup Duck Fat or Butter

1 Very Ripe Bosc Pear, peeled, cored, and finely chopped

Pear & Sage Stuffing

(1) 10 Oz Package Herbed Dried Stuffing Cubes

1 Yellow Onion, diced

1 Bosc Pear, peeled, cored, and coarsely chopped

1 Egg, whisked

2 and 1/2 Cups Milk

1/4 Cup Duck Fat or Butter

2 Tablespoons Fresh Parsley, finely chopped

1 Teaspoon Salt

3/4 Teaspoon Dried Sage

1/2 Teaspoon Dried Thyme

Pan Dripping Gravy

3 Cups Pan Drippings

2-4 Tablespoons Corn Starch

2-4 Tablespoons Flour

If you want to brine the turkey, (I recommend it!), place it in a brining or turkey-sized oven bag or large stockpot and fill the bag/pot with a brining solution that contains 1 cup of salt and 1 tablespoon of dried sage for every gallon of water. Make sure the bird is completely submerged in the brining solution and place it in the refrigerator to soak overnight. I recommend placing the bag in a pan to make it easier to get it in and out of the refrigerator.

The next morning, make the glaze by bringing all the ingredients to a boil in a medium-sized pot over medium-high heat. Bring the heat down to medium low and continue to boil for 20 minutes. Remove from heat, allow to cool a bit, and then puree in a blender or food processor until completely smooth. Set aside.

Next, make the stuffing. Pour the milk over the dried stuffing cubes in a large bowl and allow them to soak, stirring a couple times to help evenly soak the cubes. Meanwhile, saute the onions in the duck fat or butter over medium-high heat until translucent, about 10 minutes, stirring every couple minutes. Remove the onions from the heat and scrape the onions and duck fat or butter into the bowl with the stuffing. Add the egg, pear, seasonings, and 2 tablespoons of the pear glaze and toss until the ingredients are evenly distributed. Set aside.

Now you can begin preparing the turkey. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove the turkey from the brine and pat it dry. Mix together the duck fat or butter with the sage, thyme, salt, and pepper until it is fairly soft and spreadable. Rub the mixture all over the outside of the bird, the inside of the bird, and underneath the skin on the entire front (breast) of the bird. I was able to peel the skin up slightly and then push my way under the entire breast skin with my hands, rubbing the fat and spice mixture everywhere.

Evenly distribute the chopped onion on the bottom of the roasting pan. Once the bird is coated inside and out with the fat mixture, set it in the roasting pan, breast facing up. Stuff the bird until full and set aside whatever stuffing you have left in a separate oven-safe pan. Tie together the turkey's legs with cooking twine. Whisk together the 4 cups of broth with 1/2 cup of the pear glaze, then pour the mixture into the roasting pan, pouring around, not over, the turkey. Arrange the 6 halved pears around the bird.

Place the roasting pan in the oven and cook for 30 minutes, then lower the heat to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and continue cooking for 15-20 minutes per pound of turkey. Baste the bird every 20 minutes with the pan drippings, but every third basting (i.e. once per hour) baste the bird with the pear glaze. Rotate the roasting pan once per hour to help the bird cook evenly (since you will be opening the oven every 20 minutes to baste the bird, the side facing the oven will always loose a bit of heat).

If the bird is browning too quickly, tent tin foil over the roasting pan (do not allow the turkey skin to touch the tin foil otherwise it will cook onto it and the skin will get pulled off when you take off the tin foil, which would make your turkey look sad).

When it starts to look done, take the temperature of the turkey and once it reaches 165 degrees in the breast, stuffing cavity, and thigh, it is safe to eat. Allow the bird to rest for 30 minutes before carving. While the bird is resting, make the gravy. Heat 3 cups of the liquid from the bottom of the roasting pan in a small pot over low heat. Whisk in 2 tablespoons of corn starch and 2 tablespoons of flour until smooth. If you want your gravy to be thicker, continue adding tablespoons of flour and/or corn starch until your desired consistency is reached. Remove from heat and set aside.

Carve the turkey and serve with the gravy and the remaining pear glaze on the side for optional drizzling.