I posted earlier that I was thankful for my very first turkey that I made this year. I wanted to share this recipe that I found while I was clipping coupons late last month. Now mind you I didn't use all of what was called for with this recipe and I will tell you that it still turned out amazing. I will be keeping this recipe for a very very long time!!
Herb Roasted Turkey with Roasted Apples & Root Vegetables
Prep time: 40 mins (and yes...it did take about this long)
Cook time: 3 hours (I cooked mine at 3.5 hours only because I put stuffing in the bird instead of doing the root veggies and apples)
Yield: 10-12 servings (probably small servings!)
Ingredients:
1/2 c Extra Virgin Olive Oil (I used 1/4 cup of my Italian herbed bread dipping oil)
2 tsp Dried thyme leaves, crushed
3 tsp salt, divided
2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp paprika
3 large sweet potatoes (about 3 pounds, peeled and cut into 1" pieces)
4 medium parsnips (about 1 pound, peeled and cut into 1/4" slices)
2 large red cooking apples, cored, sliced and slices halved
3/4 c pecan halves (optional)
6 Tblsps firmly packed brown sugar
Preparation Directions:
1) Heat oven to 325 degrees F. Spray roasting pan (I just used the typical throw away roasting pan) with a no-stick cooking spray. Rinse, pat dry ans place turkey breast side up in pan. Whisk oil with thyme, 2 tsp. salt, garlic, pepper, and paprika. Reserve 1/4 cup for vegetables and 1 tablespoon to brush roasted turkey with remaining 3 tablespoons herbed oil. Roast turkey as directed on package. 3-3.5 hours until the meat is 165 degrees F.
**Now this is where I stopped...I actually used all the oil on the turkey making sure that the whole turkey was completely covered with the herbed oil. My mother inlaw had rinsed out the turkey and had rubbed salt on the inside of the turkey as she said it would make it taste better as well.**
2). Prepare vegetables about 15 minites before turkey will be done. Place sweet potatoes and parsnips in large glass bowl; cover. Microwave on High for 10 minutes, stiring once. Add applies and pecans. Spray 2 rimmed backing pans with no-stick cooking spray. Stir 1 tsp. salt and brown sugar into reserved 1/4 cup herbed oil; toss with vegetables and spoon into pan.
3) Remove turkey from oven, brush with reserved tablespoon herbed oil; cover loosely. Heat oven to 400 degrees F. and roast vegetables 15-20 mins until tender. Place vegetables round roast turkey on platter and serve.
So there you have it. Try this out and see what you all think as well. If you cook it just like I have typed out here for steps one...the meat on your turkey should be falling off the bone when you try to carve the turkey. I tell you it was the best turkey I have had in many years. I was told by a good family friend of mine that if you want a good juicy turkey breast, cook your turkey with the breast facing down. This allows the white meat to sit in the juices. I didn't do that, but even the white meat was nice and juicy for me. :) I wished I would have taken a picture of what our Thanksgiving feast looked like, but when I remembered I only had a picked over turkey carcass left.
