{Junk in their Trunk}: Juiciest Thanksgiving Turkey!

I came across this recipe last year when my husband and I got stranded in The Dalles, Oregon on our way back home from the Coast celebrating our 20th wedding anniversary. We managed to get probably the last hotel room in the whole city because the freeway was closed due to slide-offs and accidents because of a freak winter snowstorm that blanketed the entire Northwest (the picture below is an awesome picture of snow on the beach - made it kind of hard to find shells and agates but it was pretty)

It was the day before the day before Thanksgiving and on their nightly news that night they showcased this recipe. It made my mouth water so bad that as soon as we finally made it home which was late on Thanksgiving eve, I googled the news station in The Dalles and managed to find the recipe. I used it the next day for our family's Thanksgiving turkey and it was the best turkey ever. This turkey is so good that you will not want to waste so much as a precious morsel of it. I even made my husband help me figure out how to pour every last drop of the drippings into containers which I froze and used many times throughout the next year. Anything you make with that broth will turn out amazing. There are no pictures to go with this post since I haven't made it yet this year but trust me that it is amazing turkey.

Ingredients:
2 tbsp dried parsley
2 tbsp ground dried rosemary
2 tbsp rubbed dried sage
2 tbsp dried thyme leaves
1 tbsp lemon pepper
1 tbsp salt
1 (15 lb) whole turkey, neck and giblets removed
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 orange, cut into wedges
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1 (14.5 oz) can chicken broth
1 bottle champagne (I substituted white grape juice - same difference)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a turkey roaster with long sheets of aluminum foil that will be long enough to wrap over the turkey (or put it in one of those handy turkey bags - way easier).
2. Stir together the parsley, rosemary, sage, thyme, lemon pepper, and salt in a small bowl. Rub the herb mixture into the cavity of the turkey, then stuff with the celery, orange, onion, and carrot. Truss if desired, and place the turkey into the roasting pan. Pour the chicken broth and champagne over the turkey, making sure to get some champagne in the cavity. Bring the aluminum foil over the top of the turkey and seal. Try to keep the foil from touching the skin of the turkey breast or legs.
3. Bake the turkey in the preheated oven for 2 1/2 to 3 hours until no longer pink at the bone and the juices run clear. Uncover the turkey and continue baking until the skin turns golden brown, 30 minutes to 1 hour longer. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, near the bone should read 180 F. Remove the turkey from the oven, cover with a doubled sheet of aluminum foil, and allow to rest in a warm area 10 to 15 minutes before slicing.

Recipe courtesy Kristin Garrett.