Roasting a large turkey need not be intimidating~ Follow the technique below and surprise the family this Thanksgiving with a fabulous and juicy Farm Raised, D’Artagnan Maple Tarragon Glazed Turkey!

There will be no leftovers ~

You will need a large heavy roasting pan. If you prefer to use an aluminum disposable pan be super careful lifting to and from the oven. Remove all hot liquid with a baster before lifting the pan from the oven.

The D’Artagnan Fresh Turkey that I roasted was sixteen and a half pounds. It roasted for three and a half hours at 375 degrees fahrenheit. Every oven is different so take that into consideration. You will also need 30-40 minutes of resting time after removing the bird from the oven. This will give you time to heat up your side dishes.

Be sure to place an order for this special turkey! 

~The Turkey can be prepped and placed in the fridge overnight to save time on Thanksgiving Day~

PRINTABLE INSTRUCTIONS CAN BE FOUND HERE Maple Tarragon Glazed Turkey

You will Need:
1 Fresh Turkey ( This recipe uses a 16 pound D’Artagnan Farm Raised Turkey)
1/2 cup turkey stock
One bottle of your favorite Pinot Grigio wine
1 cup of pure maple syrup
1 cup ( 2 sticks) of butter
8-10 fresh or dried figs quartered or chopped
6 carrots; peeled and halved lengthwise
2 lemons; quartered
2 green apples; quartered
Small bunch of fresh tarragon
Olive oil for drizzling

To make the gravy you will need:

Pan drippings (I ended up with four cups)
Cornstarch (several tablespoons)
It also helps to use a small sifter to add the cornstarch to the pan…this keeps the gravy from getting lumpy.

Have on hand….
Fresh cracked salt and pepper to season
Toothpicks
Kitchen string
Aluminum foil
A kitchen timer
Meat thermometer

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees fahrenheit.

Start by having all of your ingredients chopped and ready to go. This makes the entire process go much smoother and will eliminate unnecessary stress!

Line the bottom of the roasting pan with the halved carrots. This will act as a rack to lift the turkey off the bottom of the pan.

Give yourself enough counter space and an empty sink to start with. Remove the neck and small parts that have been tucked into the cavity of the bird. Line the sink with a piece of parchment or foil. Rinse the bird inside and out with cool running water. Season the underside of the bird before placing in the roaster pan breast side up.

Now you can add half cup (one stick) of cubed butter and chopped figs around the bottom of the pan. Add 1/2 cup of turkey stock to the bottom of the pan as well.

Squeeze the juice from the quartered lemons over the entire skin of the turkey. Put the squeezed lemons and the quartered green apples inside of the cavity of the turkey.

Drizzle the entire bird with olive oil and season well with salt and pepper. Sprinkle chopped tarragon onto the turkey and add several bunches in between the wings and the legs. I like to use toothpicks to secure the wings in place. You can tie the legs with kitchen string.

(At this point, the turkey can be covered and placed in the refrigerator overnight if you like!)

Otherwise, if you plan to roast the turkey right away~
Mix one cup of Pinot Grigio white wine with half a cup of melted butter. You will use this to baste the bird every thirty minutes during the cooking time.

In a separate bowl mix half cup of Pinot Grigio white wine with one cup of Pure Maple Syrup and set aside. This will be used for the glaze during the last half hour of roasting.

Place your turkey in the oven, uncovered, for thirty minutes. Rotate the pan in the oven and baste with 1/4 of the butter wine mixture ; roast for another thirty minutes. Repeat the basting with butter mixture every thirty minutes until you have reached three hours. (You can also rotate the pan every time you baste. If the turkey starts to get too crispy you can cover loosely with a piece of foil at the two hour mark.) After the turkey has roasted for three hours remove the foil and spoon the maple wine glaze over the entire bird. Roast, uncovered, for an additional half hour or until the meat thermometer registers 165 degrees fahrenheit.

Remove the hot juices from the bottom of the pan with a baster BEFORE you lift the pan out of the oven. Reserve these juices and chopped figs to make the gravy.

Set the pan on the counter covered loosely with foil. The turkey should rest thirty to forty minutes before carving.

Click through both galleries for step by step instructions. 

You will find a carving instruction video at the bottom of this post~

The trick to a beautiful gravy is actually just having a little bit of patience and a few special tools! Follow the gallery below for simple turkey gravy.