Slow Cooker Turkey Breast

Can you believe the first week of November is already gone?  Wow!  Time is moving so fast this fall.  Thanksgiving is now less than three weeks away.  Do you have plans yet?  I just found out yesterday that my mom is coming up to spend the holiday with us. :)  Last year it was just the four of us.  It was the first time since we were married (10 years) that we didn't spend Thanksgiving with any extended family.  Since it was just us, I felt like experimenting a little bit.  Instead of cooking the big bird, I cooked a turkey breast in the slow cooker.  It was so super easy.  My husband and kids love the white meat, but I am a dark meat fan, so I also roasted some drumsticks for me.  It was awesome!  We were all happy and it was so much less work for me (much less prep work) and for my husband (who gets clean-up duty after big meals like that).  I have decided that it will be our "new tradition".

You will not believe how easy cooking a turkey breast in the slow cooker is.  Cutting off the skin is the worst part, but even that isn't too bad.  Then you just season it, stuff it with onion and fresh herbs, and throw it in the slow cooker.  I have made it three or four times now and it comes out perfectly every single time.

Slow Cooker Turkey Breast

Ingredients:
7 lb. bone-in turkey breast, thawed if frozen
1 onion, cut into large chunks
3 cloves garlic, quartered
Fresh oregano, thyme, and sage
2 tsp Bicentennial Rub
½ tsp smoked paprika
¼ tsp garlic powder
¼ tsp onion powder
Salt

Directions:
Cut all the skin off the turkey breast and discard it.  Stuff the cavity with onion, garlic, and herbs.  Combine the spices and the salt and coat the breast with it.  Place the breast on its side in a 6 qt. oval slow cooker.  Cover and cook on low for 7 hours.  If you want to, you can flip it to its other side halfway through, but this is not necessary.  Remove from slow cooker, carve, and serve.

Makes 6 servings.

Isn't it beautiful?  I don't even care for white meat that much, but this is really good!  It is very moist, and the fresh herbs permeate the meat so well you can taste them in every bite.  Amazing.  

You really need to take the skin off if you are cooking in the slow cooker.  It will become rubbery and gross and it will make it kind of greasy and fatty.  You really don't need it; the slow cooker locks in the moisture so the breast doesn't dry out.

You will notice that I didn't list how much salt to use.  That's because I use Bicentennial Rub from Penzey's as the main seasoning, and it contains salt.  So I don't add very much more.  But if you aren't using Bicentennial, you might want to use more.  Use your best judgement on that one.  The Bicentennial is awesome because it contains turmeric, which gives the turkey its beautiful golden color.  Golden color is hard to achieve in the slow cooker, so this turkey really benefits from that.  The smoked paprika helps with that too.  So if you don't have Bicentennial Rub and are putting together your own blend of spices, I suggest throwing a little bit of turmeric and smoked paprika in there.

About the gravy: I am not good at the gravy-making.  The frozen turkey breasts that I buy come with a gravy packet.  I have used that and find it's a little salty.  Even better is making a simple roux with flour and butter and then whisking in the liquid that accumulates in the slow cooker when the turkey is done.  Bring to a boil until it thickens.  Season with additional freshly ground black pepper.

This is such an easy meal that I always stock up on frozen turkey breasts when they go on sale.  Not only is this awesome for Thanksgiving, it works really well for busy weeknights too!

I can't wait for Thanksgiving!

What I'm Reading Right Now

Mary Poppins

by P.L. Travers

Doctor Sleep

by Stephen King

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Turkey Salsa Verde Chili

Is it chili weather where you live?  It is here in Wisconsin.  Today I am sharing with you my family's favorite chili recipe. Last winter, I had been wanting to try a turkey chili with white beans. There is a "Turkey and White Bean Chili" in my favorite soup cookbook, Soup of the Day.  It was still a red chili, using tomatoes and chili powder.  I wanted to make it into a "green" chili, using my favorite roasted tomatillo salsa instead of the tomatoes and chili powder.  It was a big hit with my family and I called it "Green Turkey Chili".  My husband informed me that it sounds like it uses green turkey, and that it sounds gross, so even though I still call it that in my head (and in my personal recipe file!), I have renamed it Turkey Salsa Verde Chili for his sake. :)

Turkey Salsa Verde Chili

Ingredients:
1 tbsp olive oil
½ large onion, diced
1-1¼ lbs. lean ground turkey
2 (15 oz.) cans white kidney beans, drained and partially rinsed
1½ cups roasted tomatillo salsa (aka salsa verde)
1½ cups water
½ - 1 tsp cumin
Sour cream, optional
Mexican shredded cheese, optional
Tortilla chips, optional

Directions:
Heat oil in large soup pot over low heat.  Add onion and sauté a few minutes, until it begins to soften.  Add turkey and break up into chunks.  Increase heat to medium and cook until turkey is cooked through and slightly browned and the liquid has evaporated.

Dump in the beans, tomatillo salsa, water, and cumin.  Stir well, scraping up any browned bits off the bottom of the pot.  Increase heat to high and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 10-15 minutes.  Mash some of the beans with a potato masher until slightly thickened.  Simmer a few more minutes, or until it has reached your desired consistency.

Serve with sour cream, cheese, and tortilla chips, if desired.

Makes 4 servings.

I have mentioned this several times before, but I absolutely love the Meijer Gold Del Cabo Roasted Tomatillo Salsa.

I don't live near Meijer anymore, but I got so hooked on this stuff, that I buy several jars every time we go back to Indiana to visit family.  Fortunately, a Meijer is being built here in Kenosha, so I will be able to buy this salsa whenever I want! :)

This chili is so awesome.  The flavors just meld perfectly.  My daughters love it.  They are four and six right now and they can't get enough of this stuff.  The salsa is a little spicy for them, and as they are eating it, they have to stop for water and fan their faces off, but they keep shoveling it in!  It always amazes me, because usually they are super picky about spicy food.

We like to serve this with sour cream and a little shredded cheese, with tortilla chips as spoons.  Mmm, so good! I know I will be making this several times over the winter to come.

What I'm Reading Right Now

Mary Poppins

by P.L. Travers

Doctor Sleep

by Stephen King

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Thanksgiving Leftovers: Turkey Sweet Potato Hash

I've got one more recipe for your before the big turkey day.  This one also uses up some of those Thanksgiving leftovers.  Not only turkey, but also sweet potatoes, if you haven't mashed them all, that is.  This one uses cubed sweet potatoes.  I created this recipe last winter.

Turkey Sweet Potato Hash

Ingredients: 

1 tbsp olive oil

1 Golden Delicious apple, peeled, cored, and diced

½ large onion, chopped

2 tbsp flour

1½ cups turkey or chicken stock

2 cups cooked turkey, cubed or shredded

1 lb. sweet potatoes, cut into 1” cubes and cooked

½ tsp poultry seasoning 

½ tsp salt

Biscuits

Directions:

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Sauté apple and onion until soft.  Add flour and stir until incorporated into the oil.  Slowly whisk in turkey stock.  Add turkey, sweet potatoes, poultry seasoning, and salt.  Cover skillet and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low and cook for another 5-10 minutes or until gravy is thickened.

Serve over warm biscuits.

This is really yummy.  I love how the sweet and savory flavors meld together so well.  The sweet potatoes and apples bring a little sweet, but the onion, turkey, and buttery biscuits make it decidedly savory.  

If you don't have leftover cooked sweet potatoes, it's really easy to make some.  Cube up 1 lb. of sweet potatoes (1" cubes) and you can either steam or boil them on the stove top.  I actually use my Pampered Chef Microcooker, which is used in the microwave.  Super easy.  Any way you do it, make sure to leave the potatoes a little bit al dente, since they will continue to cook after you add them to the skillet.

I'm listing this as one of my "mock Thanksgiving" recipes because it is reminiscent of Thanksgiving flavors if you make it at other times of the year.  Put some cranberry sauce and green beans on the side and you're good to go!

I wish you all the happiest of Thanksgivings!

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Turkey Leftovers: Turkey Spinach Bacon Quinoa

Last week I shared with you five great Thanksgiving recipes, covering a main dish, three sides, and a great dessert.  This week I thought I would post two recipes using leftover turkey.  This one is really great because it is completely removed from the traditional Thanksgiving dinner flavors.  It's a delicious jumble of quinoa, bacon, spinach, and turkey.  It's adapted from Mom Foodie.

Turkey Spinach Bacon Quinoa

Ingredients
½ tbsp olive oil
½ large onion, chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
4 slices bacon, chopped
1 cup of quinoa
¼ or ½ tsp dried thyme
3 cups turkey stock
1½ cups roasted turkey, diced
½ cup frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry

Directions:
Heat oil in a large skillet over med-high heat.  Add onion and cook until it begins to soften.  Add bacon, garlic, bacon, and quinoa. Fry until bacon has crisped, onions are soft, and quinoa is well toasted. Toss in the thyme and stir to release flavors.  Pour in the stock. Reduce heat to low-med, and cover to simmer.
After 10 minutes, add turkey and spinach, then simmer until liquid is absorbed.

Makes 4 servings.

This is such a great one-pot meal.  And eating quinoa and spinach will make you feel a little better about all of that holiday indulging you did a couple days earlier (if you are really concerned about that, you can leave out the bacon).  

I adjusted some of the quantities, but the biggest change I made to this recipe was that the liquid was supposed to be part turkey (or chicken) stock and part buttermilk.  I made it that way the first time, but one of my daughters is allergic to dairy, and I am lactose-intolerant, so I was really curious to see if it would turn out okay with all turkey stock and no buttermilk.  I made it that way the second time, and it was just fine.  I really couldn't tell that much of a difference.  So I have made it this way ever since.

I make this dish whenever I have diced turkey to use up in the freezer.  I buy a couple of extra turkeys at Thanksgiving time because they are so incredibly cheap, and cook them throughout the year.  This is always the first thing I make with the leftovers.  It goes over really well with my family, who have embraced quinoa wholeheartedly.

 This dish is a cinch to put together and is great for busy weeknights.  It would also work well with chicken, in case you love it so much you want to make it again even after all of your Thanksgiving leftovers are gone. :)

LeAndra from Love and Flour chose this recipe when she was assigned my blog for the Secret Recipe Club in December 2013.  Click on the button below to see her version.

And Aimee from See Aimee Cook also chose this recipe when she was assigned my blog for the Secret Recipe Club in April 2014.  Click on the button below to see her chicken version.

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Turkey Apple Cheddar Panini

I always get a little apple-obsessed in September.  I don't care for eating apples just as they are, out of hand, but I do like cooking with them.  Last weekend I made two apple-filled baked goods and this week I've been working apples into our dinners too.  What I love about apples is how well they work in savory applications.  They add just the right amount of texture contrast and a little bitty hint of sweetness.  I just can't get enough of the savory/sweet combo.

I love making paninis for lunch, and this is a great one for this time of year.  Smoked turkey, sweet crunchy apples, and tangy sharp cheddar are amazing together.

Turkey Apple Cheddar Panini

Ingredients:

Two slices Italian bread or ciabatta

3-4 slices smoked turkey deli meat

4 slices sharp cheddar cheese

Peeled, cored apple, thinly sliced

Butter

Directions:
Preheat panini press.  Put cheese slices on both pieces of bread.  Top one slice with turkey and the other with apples.  Put the sandwich together and butter the outside.  Place on hot panini press and cook until cheese is melted and bread is beautifully browned on the outside.

Makes 1 sandwich.

This is the best way to construct this sandwich.  Having cheese on both slices of bread makes it stay together really well.

 I like my paninis very crispy and crunchy on the outside.

Mmm, so tasty!

What are you having for lunch on this beautiful fall day?

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Mexican Turkey Crescent Bake

Today is Day Four of my Cinco de Mayo week.  Have you been enjoying these Mexican recipes?  The one I have for you today is probably more of a "Tex-Mex" meal.  It's really easy to put together and your family will love it.  It's a baked dish with crescent roll dough on the bottom, ground turkey and chili beans in the middle, and melty cheese on top.  It's slightly adapted from Pillsbury.

Mexican Turkey Crescent Bake

Ingredients:.

¼ large onion, diced

1lb. ground turkey

1 (15 oz.) can beans in chili sauce, undrained

1 tbsp taco seasoning or half of a packet

1 (8 oz.) can refrigerated seamless dough sheet

1½ cups shredded cheese

Sour cream, for topping

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375°.  Coat a 9x13” baking dish with baking spray.

In a large skillet, sauté onions until almost tender.  Add turkey and cook until no longer pink.  Add beans and taco seasoning. Heat to boiling over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. 

Place dough in baking dish; press over bottom of pan to form crust. Spoon turkey mixture evenly over dough; sprinkle with cheese. 

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Top with sour cream, if desired.

Makes 6 servings.

Of course, you can make this with ground beef if you prefer.  It would be great either way.  It would probably also work with shredded or cubed chicken.  The original recipe called for "black beans in chipotle sauce with corn and red peppers".  I had never seen that before, so I just used chili beans.  It would be good with some corn thrown in there too.

Have you used those seamless dough sheets?  They are the same thing as a roll of crescent dough, but without the perforations.  Pillsbury apparently realized that cooks use crescent rolls for so much more than the actual rolls, and these seamless dough sheets are awesome.  No pinching the seams together.  I have made several different varieties of "bakes" with them.  This was the first, I think.  I've also made a meatball sub bake that is awesome.  Then I made a creamy tuna bake with it.  It's a very handy thing to have on hand for a quick dinner made with whatever you happen to have in the fridge or pantry.  (And no, this is not a sponsored post; I just really like these seamless dough sheets!)

Tomorrow I will finish up Cinco de Mayo Week with a yummy dessert.

Cinco de Mayo Week Recipes:

Monday: Stacked Chicken Enchiladas Suizas

Tuesday: Quesadilla Taco Pizzas

Wednesday: Grilled Stuffed Burritos

Friday: Churro Cheesecake Bars

Links to all of my other Mexican recipes:

Baked Chicken Chimichangas

Baked Chili Bean and Cheese Enchiladas

Black Bean Tortilla Pie

Cheesy Chipotle Beef and Noodle Bake

Chicken Taquitos with Bean Dipping Sauce

Chipotle Pork Burritos

Cilantro Cream Sauce

Creamy Chicken Baked Flautas

Doya Margaritas

Enchiladas Hermanas

Enfrijoladas (Baked Tortillas, Bean, and Cheese)

Guacamole Rice

Homemade Guacamole

Homemade Taco Seasoning

Jim's Chicken Taco Quesadillas

Lentil Tacos

Mexican Brownies with Cinnamon Dulce de Leche

Mexican Deep Dish Pan Pizza

Mexican Turkey Lasagna

Mini Taco Bowls

Pumpkin Black Bean Enchiladas

Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Soup

Slow Cooker Garlic Lime Chicken for Tacos

Slow Cooker Short Rib Tacos

Slow Cooker Shredded Beef for Tacos

Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas

Southwest Sauce

Southwestern Burgers

Spicy Black Bean Dip

Sweet Corn Tomalito

Sweet Potato and Black Bean Enchilada Stack

Tequila Marinated Steak Quesadillas

Turkey and Sweet Potato Burritos

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Garlic Turkey Meatballs

It's been a long time since I posted a new meatball recipe.  This is one that I created myself.  I guess I had made enough different meatball recipes to come up with one on my own.  I don't remember what inspired this particular creation, but it was definitely inspired!  These meatballs are made with ground turkey, and lots of garlic, as the name implies.  These are for all of you garlic lovers out there.

Garlic Turkey Meatballs

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground turkey

¼ cup dry breadcrumbs

1 egg

1 tsp salt

4 cloves garlic, grated

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400°.

Combine turkey, breadcrumbs, egg, salt, and garlic.  Mix until combined.  Form into 24 tablespoon-sized meatballs.  Place on baking sheet.  Bake for 20 minutes.

Makes 4 servings, 6 meatballs each.

These meatballs are so tasty!  They do have a strong garlic flavor, but it's not bitey like raw garlic.  More of a mild cooked garlic flavor.  I like the consistency of them too.  They are compact and smooth, but not dense.  Just right.

The beauty of these babies is that they will go with pretty much any side you want to serve them with.  Mashed potatoes? Yep.  Spaghetti?  Yep.  Asian noodles?  Yep.  Your favorite risotto?  Yep.  Extremely versatile.

This is a great meatball recipe to have on hand since it uses basic ingredients that most likely always have in your pantry.  

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Improv Challenge: Curried Ground Turkey with Vegetables

It's the third Thursday of the month and that means it's time for another great Improv Challenge. The premise of the Improv Challenge is easy: each month there are two assigned ingredients.  The participants must make a recipe using both ingredients and blog about it.  

This month's assigned ingredients were peas and carrots.  Peas and carrots, huh?  Not overly exciting ingredients, but ones I use very regularly, several times a week.  I didn't spend much time trying to be innovative and do something super creative with peas and carrots.  I'm sure somebody will do dessert, but this month I decided to go with something more standard.  I've had this recipe in my food photo file for several months, but hadn't gotten around to posting it yet.  Peas and carrots aren't exactly the main ingredients here, but they play an important role, so I thought it would be good for this challenge.  It's a slight adaptation of one I saw at Simply Recipes.

Curried Ground Turkey with Vegetables

Ingredients:

3-4 tbsp vegetable oil

1 lb. ground turkey 

½ large onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, grated

1” fresh ginger, grated

¾  cup water

1 tbsp curry powder or garam masala

1 lb.  potatoes, peeled and cut into 1” chunks

1½ cups matchstick carrots, cooked (3-4 mins in microcooker)

1 cup frozen peas

1 tsp salt

½ cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Rice or flatbread (optional)

Directions:

Heat the vegetable oil over medium heat in a large skillet. Sauté onion until it begins to soften.  Add the ground turkey, breaking it up with a spoon, and cook until it browns.  Add the garlic and ginger; mix well and sauté for another 1-2 minutes.  Mix in the curry powder or garam masala, water, and potatoes. Stir to combine and cover. Turn the heat down to medium-low and simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.

When the potatoes are tender, add the carrots and peas. Mix well and cover the pot. Cook 2-3 minutes. Add salt, if needed, to taste.

Right before you serve, mix in the chopped cilantro. Serve alone or with flatbread or white rice.

Makes 4 servings.

I love this recipe for a couple of reasons.  First, I love how it uses ground turkey.  Ground turkey is widely available, healthier than ground beef, and affordable.  I usually end up with a couple of pounds in my freezer, but can't think what to do with them.  Using ground turkey makes this recipe super easy.  Second, I love how you can change up the spices if you want to get a different flavor profile.  The original recipe called for either garam masala, curry powder, or your favorite Indian spices.  I used 1 tbsp sweet curry powder, mixed with 1/4 tsp hot curry powder.  The ratio may sound off, but the hot is really hot!  It doesn't take much.  I want to try this with garam masala next time.  I also like how you can easily change the veggies to suit your tastes too.  I want to try it with sweet potatoes sometime.

Most of all, I love how easy it is to make this delicious one-pot recipe.  I love one-pot recipes!  They make busy weeknights so much easier. And frozen peas and matchstick carrots are a cook's best friend on those nights.

This dish was a big hit with my family.  My husband and both girls loved it.

So the next time you pick up some ground turkey but aren't sure what to make with it, try this recipe out.

Check out the collection below to see all the other great peas and carrots recipes and come back next month to see what I make with eggs and bacon. What a yummy assignment!

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Thanksgiving Leftovers: Spicy Cranberry Turkey Quesadillas

I just can't stop with the Thanksgiving recipes.  Can you tell it's my favorite holiday? (My favorite secular holiday that is. Easter is my favorite Christian holiday.)  I know that lots of people have Thanksgiving and Thanksgiving leftovers on the brain because the number of followers on my "Turkey Recipes" board on Pinterest skyrocketed yesterday.  One recipe in particular got lots of repins yesterday: Spicy Turkey Quesadillas.  It's a Taste of Home recipe.  I actually  made and photographed this recipe (well, my version of it) over the summer, so I thought now would be a great time to share it with you.  Here's my version.


Spicy Cranberry Turkey Quesadillas

Ingredients:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
½ cup cranberry sauce
4 tsp chipotle in adobo, minced
2 cups cooked turkey breast, diced or shredded
8 (8”) flour tortillas

Directions:
In a medium bowl, stir together the cream cheese, cranberry sauce, and chipotle in adobo.  Stir in the turkey breast.  Spread this over one side of each tortilla and top with remaining tortillas.

Cook in  a large nonstick skillet over medium heat for 2-3 minutes per side or until lightly browned.  Cut into wedges.

Makes 4 servings.

This is an awesome way to use your Thanksgiving leftovers.  It uses up a good amount of turkey and cranberry sauce.  And if you serve corn on Thanksgiving, you can use that to make some corn cakes to go along with the quesadillas.  The ones in my picture above were a "rough draft" of a recipe I later perfected: Golden Cheddar Corn Cakes.  They make the perfect side dish for these quesadillas.  

I used chipotle in adobo instead of green chiles in my quesadillas.  I just prefer the flavor.  You will have to adjust the amount based on your preferences.  Maybe start with 2 tsp if you don't like things too spicy, give it a taste, and add more if you like.

I like Thanksgiving leftover recipes that resemble nothing like the Thanksgiving dinner.  These quesadillas certainly fit the bill!

Okay, I am definitely taking a break from the Thanksgiving recipes tomorrow!  But I do have one more recipe to share with you that makes a fun little treat for the kids.  I'll post that on Monday or Tuesday. Have a great weekend!

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Cheesecloth Turkey

Happy Week-Before-Thanksgiving!  Do you have your menu planned out yet?  You don't?  Oh well, I can probably help you with that!  Last year I shared with you a whole week of Thanksgiving sides and a dessert, so if you need some inspiration, check out this post.  It has the links to all of them.  I have a few new recipes to share with you this week: a great pumpkin dessert that is a nice alternative to pie, a great sweet potato recipe that won't hog any space in your oven, and this gorgeous turkey.

I have posted a turkey recipe before.  Four years ago I shared with you my very first turkey.  I used Alton Brown's brining and roasting method and it turned out perfectly.  I made that turkey for three years with great results every time.  Last year I got a break from the turkey because my sister made her first.  I have actually made two turkeys this year, one in May and one last month.  They are so incredibly cheap right before Thanksgiving (58 cents a pound here), that I bought two extra.  I buy the biggest ones I can find, because it's the same amount of work no matter how big it is.  The one in May was huge; I want to say over 25 lbs.  We ate it for lunch that day, and had leftovers for dinner, then I ended up getting 13 cups of cubed meat off of the thing.  That stocked my freezer for quite a while!  I tried a new recipe/method and I love it.  It is so much easier than doing the brine, and the results are just as good, if not better.  Definitely better when it comes to crispy skin.  The breast meat is incredibly moist and super duper flavorful.  This recipe is courtesy of another Food Network chef, Michael Symon.  He made this turkey on The Chew, and I couldn't wait to try it.  I adapted it very slightly; here's how I do it.


Cheesecloth Turkey

Ingredients:
One 20 lb. turkey, thawed, neck and gizzards removed
¼ cup kosher salt
2 heads garlic (halved through its equator)
8 sprigs fresh oregano
8 sprigs fresh thyme
2 onions (peeled and quartered)
2 sticks butter
½ cup chicken or turkey stock or water
Cheesecloth

Directions:
The day before roasting, rinse the turkey inside and out with cold water, set on a clean kitchen towel, and pat dry. Season the turkey inside and out with the salt. Wrap the turkey in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 24 hours.

Remove the turkey from the refrigerator 1 to 2 hours prior to roasting to bring to room temperature.  Preheat the oven to 425° with the oven rack set on the lowest rung. 

In the turkey’s neck cavity, place a half of a head of garlic, a few sprigs of oregano, a few sprigs of thyme, and a half of an onion. Wrap the neck skin over and around the cavity to enclose the seasoning ingredients.

In the body cavity, place half of the remaining garlic, 2 onion halves, and half of the remaining oregano and thyme.

Place the turkey, breast side up, on a rack set into a large roasting pan. Fold the wings and tuck the tips underneath the bird. 

In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the remaining garlic, onion, oregano, and thyme to the pot with the stock or water. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat so that the liquid simmers, and continue to cook at a lower simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.

When cool enough to handle, soak a double layer of cheesecloth big enough to cover the bird in the butter mixture and drape over the breast and legs of the turkey. Pour the remaining contents of the pan over the bird, pushing the pieces of vegetable and herbs into the bottom of the roasting pan.

Place the turkey in the oven and roast for 45 minutes (Warning: there might be smoke. Open the kitchen window). Turn the oven temperature down to 375° and continue to roast for another 15 to 20 minutes per pound, removing the cheesecloth for the final 10 minutes to brown, if needed; or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of a thigh registers 160°, about 4 hours. Remove the turkey from the oven and allow to rest for 20 minutes before carving.

Makes 12-14 servings.

That's all there is to it.  Not complicated at all.  Basically, you are just stuffing the bird with aromatic onions, garlic, and herbs, and then draping it with cheesecloth soaked in butter and herbs.  Really very easy.  

Here is the turkey all covered in its "blankie", ready to go into the oven.

Look how gorgeous it is when you take the cheesecloth off!  I couldn't believe how brown it got with the cheesecloth on there.  It browns right through it.

This is a great recipe if your guests enjoy the crispy skin.  This is the turkey I made in May.

This is the turkey I made last month.  You may notice isn't not quite as evenly browned.  That's because I goofed up and skipped a step.  I totally forgot to salt it the day before.  Oops!  But I was curious to see how  it would turn out without that step.  And it turned out just fine.  I will definitely include that step in the future, but it's nice to know that you will still get a terrific bird if you forget.  

 This bird was about 15½ lbs.  I put it in the oven at 12:30 and it was completely done at 3:30.  Three hours for a bird that size is pretty good!  I forgot to note how long the 25+ pounder took, but it wasn't more than 4 hours, I don't think.

 The only thing I changed about Michael's recipe was doubling it (his called for a puny 10 pounder), and I don't use fennel like he calls for.  I just don't like it that much.  You can use any herbs you like.  You can see in this picture that I used some sage too.

 Look at that beautiful breast meat!  And it really is super flavorful.  You can really taste the thyme and oregano in it.  

 My husband uses an electric knife for the carving.

I can't wait to do this again next week!

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