Holiday Champagne Turkey

Have your champagne and your turkey too. I love to experiment with different flavors and combinations when I’m cooking turkey. Today I have a recipe for you from Foster Farms for a turkey basted in champagne. Don’t worry, you don’t have to use the whole bottle. You can save a little savor while you’re cooking.

Recipes you can prepare ahead work great for Thanksgiving day, then you can relax and mingle with your family and friends when they arrive, they’ll just think you’re super human (don’t tell them otherwise).

A bottle of champagne is the secret to the moist turkey recipe below, stuffed with apples and baked in an oven bag.

Holiday Champagne Turkey Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 (12 pound) Foster Farms Fresh Whole Turkey, neck and giblets removed
• 1/2 cup butter, cubed
• 2 apples, cored and halved
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2/3 (750 milliliter) bottle champagne

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Rinse turkey, and pat dry. Gently loosen turkey breast skin, and insert pieces of butter between the skin and breast. Place apples inside the turkey’s cavity. Sprinkle with garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Place turkey in a roasting bag, and pour champagne over the inside and outside of the bird. Close bag, and place turkey in a roasting pan.
3. Bake turkey 3 to 3 1/2 hours in the preheated oven, or until the internal temperature is 180 degrees F (85 degrees C) when measured in the meatiest part of the thigh. Remove turkey from bag, and let stand for at least 20 minutes before carving.

A 14 – 18 pound turkey takes about 3 ¾ to 4 ¼ hours to cook, and you want to begin checking for doneness about an hour before the end time. You’ll want to take your turkey out of the oven about 20 minutes before you plan to carve it to give it a chance to rest and cool a little (and you want to give your guests a chance to ogle over your beautifully cooked bird).

If you run into problems cooking your Thanksgiving turkey, or you just have a last minute question you can call Foster Farms Turkey Hotline (1-800 255-7227) they’ll have experts on-hand 24 hours a day November 18th – 30th to coach you through last-minute turkey emergencies you have, and also to answer any questions you have as you prep, (like The age old debate: stuffing inside or out?), and provide suggestions for using those turkey leftovers.

Image: Foster Farms