Coffee-Bean Turkey with Sweet Onion Gravy

Please Credit: The Macy’s Culinary Council Thanksgiving & Holiday Cookbook

Coffee-Bean Turkey with Sweet Onion Gravy

Tom Douglas

“Seattle is famous for itscoffee. And that inspiredme to stuff the turkey cavitywith whole roasted coffeebeans. Turns out they add anice toasty-smoky aromathat seasons the bird fromwithin. I leave them in evenafter the turkey’s done. Ifa few slip out at the tablewhile I’m carving, it’s agood conversation starter.”

Serves 12

1 fresh whole turkey, 15 pounds

6 tablespoons butter, at roomtemperature, plus 6 tablespoonsmelted

Kosher salt and freshly ground blackpepper

12 sage leaves

1⁄2 cup dark-roast coffee beans

1 tablespoon rendered bacon fat,melted

1 onion, cut in half lengthwise andjulienned

5 cloves garlic, peeled but left whole

7 to 8 cups chicken or turkey broth,heated

1⁄2 cup instant (quick-dissolving) floursuch as Wondra

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

If the turkey has a metal clamp onits legs, remove it. Remove the gibletsand neck from the cavity, if included,and reserve for another use or discard.Remove the cavity fat, then rinse theturkey well and pat dry with papertowels.

In a small bowl, mash the 6 tablespoonsroom-temperature butter untilsmooth and season with salt and pepper.Using your fingers, and startingfrom the cavity end of the turkey, separatethe skin from the breast meat, beingcareful not to tear the skin. Gently rubthe softened butter evenly over thebreast meat, then insert 6 of the sageleaves under the skin, placing 3 leaveson each breast half. Pat the skin backinto place, and then brush the wholeexterior of the bird with some of themelted butter. Season the turkey allover, including the cavity, with salt andpepper. Sprinkle the coffee beans

inside the cavity.

To roast the turkey: Brush the bottomof a roasting pan just large enough toaccommodate the turkey with thebacon fat, then make a bed of the onionslices in the center of the pan. Placethe turkey, breast side up, on top ofthe onion.

Place the turkey in the oven androast for 1 hour. Baste the turkey withsome of the melted butter and add thegarlic, the remaining 6 sage leaves,and 5 cups of the broth to the pan.Continue to roast the turkey, bastingwith butter at regular intervals a fewmore times, for another 11⁄2 to 2 hours.If the turkey is browning too much,tent with aluminum foil. The turkey isdone if when a thigh joint is piercedthe juices run clear, or when aninstant-read thermometer inserted intothe thickest part of a thigh away frombone registers 155° to 165°F.

Remove the turkey from oven,transfer to a platter, and tent with

aluminum foil. Let rest for about20 minutes.

To make the gravy: Before beginning,remove any stray coffee beans thatmay have escaped from the turkey

cavity into the roasting pan. Set theroasting pan with the onion slices andjuices on the stove top over mediumhighheat. You may need to straddlethe pan over two burners. Using awooden spoon, stir up any brownedbits stuck to the pan bottom and continuestirring for a few minutes. Sprinklethe flour evenly over the onion andjuices and stir until well combined, 1 to2 minutes. Add 2 cups of the broth andany juices that have collected aroundthe turkey on the platter, then simmergently, whisking occasionally, untilthickened, 8 to 10 minutes. If the gravyseems too thick, add more broth.Season with salt and pepper.Pour the gravy into a warmedgravy boat and keep warm. Carve theturkey and serve immediately. Passthe gravy at the table.

Tom’s Tip: If you are stuffing yourturkey, be careful not to overstuff it.You want plenty of space for hot airto circulate inside the cavity so themeat cooks evenly