Spatchcock Turkey: A split-back turkey that’s brined then rubbed in a lemon sage browned butter. Roasted until deep golden brown and served with a gravy made from the drippings. Browned Butter Bread Stuffing: Diced French country bread tossed in browned butter, fresh cranberries, granny smith & honeycrisp apples, chopped bacon, diced onions, grated manchego, fresh herbs, and warm spices. Baked until golden brown and crisp on top.
Big Ass Batch of Browned Butter
It’s butter, but better because we toasted it.
- December 12, 2020
- 20 min
INGREDIENTS:
| Unsalted Butter, Cut into large cubes | 4 Pounds |
PREPARATION METHOD:
- In a medium saucepan on medium heat, melt all the butter.
- Stirring occasionally, cook butter until milk solids (i.e. white stuffed at the bottom of the pan) has browned to a deep golden brown, about 10-15 minutes. Butter should also have a nutty aroma.
- Remove browned butter from heat and strain into a heat-safe container. Let butter completely cool.
- Use generously in the recipes below. You can also make lots extra and use it to butter your breads, your vegetables, yourself, your friends…when in doubt, butter it. Without doubt, also butter it.
Spatchcocked Turkey & Gravy
A split-back turkey that’s brined then rubbed in a lemon sage browned butter. Roasted until deep golden brown and served with a gravy made from the drippings.
- December 12, 2020
- 12
- 48 hr
INGREDIENTS:
| Whole Raw Turkey (~12 lbs) | 1 Turkey |
Turkey Brine |
|
| Water | 1 Gallon |
| Morton Kosher Salt | 1 ½ Cups |
| Light Brown Sugar | 1 ½ Cups |
| White Onion, Peeled & Quartered | 1 Large Onion |
| Garlic Cloves, Whole | 6 Cloves |
| Lemon | 2 Each |
| Clementine Orange | 2 Each |
| Bay Leaves | 8 Leaves |
| Rosemary Leaves, Stem Removed | 4 Sprigs |
| Sage Leaves | 4 Sprigs |
| Thyme Leaves, Stem Removed | 6 Sprigs |
| Black Peppercorns | 2 Tablespoons |
| Cloves, Whole | 10 Pieces |
| Allspice Berries, Whole Dried | 5 Pieces |
| Cinnamon Sticks | 3 Sticks |
| Yellow Mustard Seeds | 2 Tablespoons |
| Ice Cubes | 1 Gallon (16 cups) |
Browned Butter Turkey Rub |
|
| Browned Butter (See side recipe), softened to room temperature | 2 Cups |
| Morton Kosher Salt | 3 Tablespoons |
| Ground Black Pepper | 2 Tablespoons |
| Fresh Rosemary, Minced | ¼ Cup |
| Fresh Lemon Zest | ¼ Cup |
| Fresh Sage, Minced | ¼ Cup |
| Garlic, Minced | ¼ Cup |
Baking Pan Vegetables |
|
| White Onion, Peeled & Large Diced | 2 Cups |
| Whole Garlic Cloves | 1 Cup |
| Vegetable Oil | 3 Tablespoons |
Herb & Lemon Gravy |
|
| Browned Butter (See side recipe) | 2 Cups |
| All-purpose Flour | 2 Cups |
| Roasted Onion and Garlic & Drippings from Roasted Turkey | All of It |
| Unsalted Chicken Stock | 2 Quarts |
| Morton Kosher Salt | 2 Tablespoons |
| Black Pepper, Ground | 2 teaspoons |
| Rosemary Leaves, Stem Removed, Minced | 1 Sprig |
| Sage Leaves, Minced | 2 Sprigs |
| Thyme Leaves, Stem Removed, Minced | 3 Sprigs |
| Lemon, Zested Peel & Inside Juiced | 1 Each |
PREPARATION METHOD:
1. TWO DAYS BEFORE SHOWTIME, BRINE THE TURKEY (AND MAKE YOUR BIG ASS BATCH OF BROWNED BUTTER):
- In a 20-quart stock pot on high heat, add water, herbs, and spices. Bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
- After simmering, remove the stock pot from heat and add ice cubes to rapidly chill the hot brine. Stir brine until all ice cubes are melted.Why do other recipes make you boil all the water then cool it? WTF. That’s just wonkadoo. Ain’t nobody got time for that. Making half of the water ice cubes makes cool MUCH faster.
- Place raw, whole turkey in brine and rotate the turkey to push air bubbles from the turkey cavity. Place a small plate on top of the turkey to keep the turkey submerged in brine.
- Brine turkey for 12-24 hours. Do not brine turkey for more than 24 hours, or it may become too salty.
- Remove turkey from brine and pat dry with paper towels. Place turkey in a large baking pan and cover. Keep the turkey chilled in the fridge until one hour before roasting.
2. AT LEAST 2 HOURS BEFORE ROASTING THAT BIRD, MAKE THE BROWNED BUTTER TURKEY RUB:
In a food processor, combine all ingredients until well-mixed.
3. SPATCHCOCK THAT BIRD & ROAST
- Adjust the oven rack to the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 425°F
- Using sturdy kitchen scissors and a stabilized cutting board (a damp paper towel under your cutting board), remove the backbone of the turkey by cutting through the ribs that are alongside the backbone.
- Flip the turkey oven to be breast-side up, and flatten the turkey by pressing down on both breasts of the turkey. It’s normal for some of the ribs to crack during this process. Try to flatten the turkey evenly on both sides.
- Using your hands, gently separate the connective tissue between the turkey skin and muscle. Evenly spread the browned butter turkey rub under the turkey skin. Set aside for a hot second.
- In an extra-large baking pan lined with aluminum foil (or a silicone baking mat), Spread a thin layer of white onions and garlic cloves on the large baking pan. Place a wire baking rack over the garlic and onions, then place buttered spatchcock turkey on the wire rack.
- Pat turkey once more with paper towel to dry the skin. Even rub the dried skin with vegetable oil.
- Bake turkey for 40 minutes, rotate pan, then bake for another 35-40 minutes. Internal temperature of the turkey at the thickest part of the breast should be 150°F, and the skin should be deep golden brown. If the skin is browning too fast in the oven, cover the turkey skin with a large piece of aluminum foil
- Remove turkey from the oven and let rest for 15-20 minutes before carving.
4. WHILE THE TURKEY RESTS, MAKE THAT GRAVY, BABY
- In a large sauce pot on medium-high heat, melt the browned butter. Add flour and continuously stir butter and flour mix for 2-3 minutes to cook the flour. Boom, you make a roux.
- Whisking constantly, add the room temperature chicken stock as a slow, steady stream into the roux until the mixture is smooth.
- Add in the roasted turkey drippings, garlic, and onion from the baking pan. Also add the kosher salt, pepper, fresh herbs, lemon zest, and lemon juice.
- Bring the gravy to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer for 10-15 minutes.
- Removed gravy from heat and blend using an immersion stick blender. For the love of all that is clean in the kitchen, DO NOT blend this hot gravy in a regular blender because hot shit explodes in regular blenders. The only exception is if you have a Vitamix with a locked lid, then blend in SMALL batches.
- Make it rain gravy all over that carved bird. Cuss yeah.
Browned Butter Bread Stuffing
Diced French country bread tossed in browned butter, fresh cranberries, granny smith & honeycrisp apples, chopped bacon, diced onions, grated manchego, fresh herbs, and warm spices. Baked until golden brown and crisp on top.
- December 12, 2020
- 12
- 1 hr 30 min
INGREDIENTS:
| Browned Butter (See side recipe) | 1 Cup |
| Thick-Cut Bacon, Finely Chopped | 1 Cup |
| White Onion, Small Diced | ½ Cup |
| Garlic, Minced | ¼ Cup |
| Celery, Small Diced | ½ Cup |
| Sage Leaves, Minced | 2 Tablespoons |
| Rosemary Leaves, Stem Removed & Minced | 2 Tablespoons |
| Thyme Leaves, Stem Removed & Minced | 2 Tablespoons |
| Honeycrisp Apples, Core Removed Small Diced | 2 Cups |
| Unsalted Chicken Stock | 1 Quart |
| Large Eggs | 4 Eggs |
| Morton Kosher Salt | 2 Tablespoons |
| Black Pepper, Ground | 1 teaspoon |
| French Country Bread, Diced into 1” Cubes | 10 Cups |
| Manchego Cheese, Coarsely Grated | 1 Cup |
| Pomegranate Arils | 1 ½ Cups |
| Italian Curled Parsley, Minced | ¾ Cup |
PREPARATION METHOD:
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- In a skillet on high heat, melt browned butter. Add chopped bacon and cook for 3-5 minutes to brown bacon. Add onion, garlic, celery, sage, rosemary, thyme, and honeycrisp apples, and cook for another 5 minutes until vegetables have softened slightly and onions have become translucent. Browning of the vegetables during this process is fine. Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together unsalted chicken stock, eggs, kosher salt, and black pepper. Add cooled veg & herb mix, diced bread, and grated cheese. Fold together until all the bread is completed coated in the egg mix and veg & herbs are even distributed.
- In a greased 9”x13” baking dish, evenly spread bread stuffing mix and cover with aluminum foil. Bake stuffing covered for ~30 minutes, then uncover the dish and bake for another 10-15 minutes. The stuffing should be lightly toasted on the top and the middle of the baked stuffing should be set but lightly jiggly.
- Remove stuffing from the oven and let cool for ~10 minutes. Using a spatula, transfer stuffing to a large serving bowl. Add the fresh pomegranate aril and minced parsley. Give the stuffing a fluffing while mixing the pomegranate and parsley throughout the stuff.
- Serve and bask in the glory of your friend’s praise for your amazing kitchen chops.
