Thanksgiving Thoughts on Good Friday

Happy Good Friday to you--the gateway to a precious Easter weekend. Many people will start their celebrations today, and we are no exception. That is, except, ours is just a big dinner, not really a celebration :-) Back at Christmas, one of Adam's customers was kind enough to give us a 18 lb turkey. Well, that really isn't something I can whip up any night of the week, so it's been sitting in my parents chest freezer since. I decided w/ Alex being off school all day, it was a good time to stay home and roast this bird along w/ all the trimmings for a yummy "Thanksgiving" type meal. Roast turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes/gravy and cranberry sauce...You're hungry, aren't you??!! So this really isn't a recipe, but more a method. I've only cooked one other turkey in my life, and that was 4 years ago, so it is a refresher course for me too. But this is the exact reference I used back then, and I must say our turkey was delectiable. This comes from allrecipes.com and I hope it's useful to someone else out there!

How To Roast A Turkey


To prepare the turkey for roasting, first remove the giblets (and save for gravy or stuffing). Next, rinse the bird inside and out and pat dry with paper towels.

•If you are stuffing the bird, stuff it loosely, allowing about ½ to ¾ cup stuffing per pound of turkey.

•Brush the skin with melted butter or oil. Tie drumsticks together with string (for stuffed birds only).

•Insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh. The thermometer should point towards the body, and should not touch the bone.

•Place the bird on a rack in a roasting pan, and into a preheated 350 degree F (175 degrees C) oven. Use the following chart to estimate the time required for baking.

•Bake until the skin is a light golden color, and then cover loosely with a foil tent. During the last 45 minutes of baking, remove the foil tent to brown the skin. Basting is not necessary, but helps promote even browning.


Weight of Bird           Roasting time (Unstuffed)           Roasting Time (Stuffed)
10-18 lbs                   3-3.5 hours                               3.75-4.5 hours

18-22 lbs                   3.5-4 hours                               4.5-5 hours

22-24 lbs                   4-4.5 hours                               5-5.5 hours

24-29 lbs                   4.5-5 hours                               5.5-6.25 hours

The turkey is done when the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F (75 degrees C) at the thigh

*NOTE* I baste my turkey w/ melted butter, once every hour.

Shared on Everyday Sisters Nov. 13, 2011