Turkey for Sunday Dinner

We didn't fix a turkey over the holidays and a few weeks ago I bought a 20 pound fresh turkey for 59 cents a pound! Then I stuffed it in the freezer for another day.  The last half of the week I have been thinking of a Sunday dinner composed of things I am not tired of and had not had for a while. 

First I decided on Corny corn bread and then on Asian slaw.  Next cane the whole 20 pound turkey with mashed potatoes and gravy.  Sounds good to me.  Friday I mixed up a batch of my own Brownie mix and baked a double batch so dessert is done.    thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2012/10/sweet-italian-sausage-potatoes-kale.html  is the link for the Corney Corn Bread recipe.     thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2010/09/grilled-chicken-chinese-slaw-orzo-with.html   is the link for the Asian Slaw recipe.     thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2012/10/homemade-brownie-mix-and-walnut-brownies.html   are the recipes for both the mix and the Brownies.

Ingredients for Roast Turkey with Mashed Potatoes and Gravy:

1 whole turkey fresh or completely thawed, 20 pounds
Salt
Pepper
olive oil or butter

The first thing to think about when preparing a frozen turkey is the thawing.  Either place it in the refrigerator for 3-4 days or fill a large sink with cold water and submerge the wrapped turkey for about 12-16 hours.  Take the turkey from the package and remove the neck and giblets.  Dry the turkey and butter or oil him well then season generously both inside and out.

I place the neck in the bottom of the roasting pan to serve as a rack and portion the bird atop.  Then I tent the bird with foil or place the lid on the roaster.  I am not as much interested in a browned bird as I am a moist bird.  PLUS NOBODY I HAVE EVER KNOWN WALKS THE FINISHED BIRD ON A PLATTER TO THE TABLE TO CARVE IT?

What's that all about?  The meal would be cold at our house by the time you carved that much turkey to feed that many people!

So, I roast him ahead, let his sit and cool, carve him and place the slices attractively in a large covered glass low sided casserole to warm up at dinner and serve.  Way, way, way less hassle in my life!

Turkey Gravy:

Not much is better than rich delicious turkey gravy.  Take about a cup of the drippings and stir in about 2 tablespoons of flour over medium heat stirring to get the raw flour taste cooked out and add 1 C. of tap water and stir like heck while it comes to a boil and thickens.  Taste for salt and pepper.

Mashed potatoes:

1 potato per person plus add 1 for the pot is my rule of thumb
1 T. soft butter per potato
2-3 T. milk per potato
Salt
Black pepper


Peel and quarter the potatoes into a kettle with water to cover by 1".  Add a heaping tablespoon  of salt to the water and potatoes before cooking.  Cover the pan with it's lid and bring to a boil.  Next  reduce the heat and cook until fork tender.    Drain well.  Add the potatoes back to the pan with the butter and milk and beat with an electric mixer or mash with a hand masher until you reach the desired consistency.  Add additional milk, butter, and seasoning to taste.  (People have different ideas about how they like their mashed potatoes, probably based on what they grew up on.  So I leave quite a bit of latitude in these instructions.) 

I served 6 adults dinner tonight and would have had enough for 8-10.