Roast Turkey With New England Stuffing and Cream Sauce

Preparation

1. Step 1

   Dry an 18-pound turkey thoroughly and reserve the liver. (Make giblet stock from the remaining giblets if desired.)

   Step 2

   Cut enough day-old bread, crusts reserved, into ½-inch cubes to measure 12 cups, and in a shallow pan, toast the cubes in a preheated very slow oven (275°F) oven until they are lightly browned.

   Step 3

   In a large bowl, combine the cubes with ½ cup minced parsley, 2 tablespoons sage, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1 teaspoon each of thyme, marjoram, and pepper, and toss the mixture well. In a large heavy skillet, sauté 2 cups minced onions and the reserved liver, minced, in 2 sticks (1 cup) butter for 10 minutes. Add 1 cup minced celery and cook the mixture for 5 minutes. Transfer the mixture to the bowl and add 1 egg, lightly beaten, ½ cup stock, and ¼ cup cream. Combine the stuffing well and let it cool completely.

   Step 4

   Sprinkle the turkey skin and cavities with salt and pepper and pack the cavities loosely with the stuffing. Sew up the openings, truss the turkey securely, and spread it with 1 stick (½ cup) butter, softened. On a rack in a roasting pan, roast the turkey on one side in a preheated hot oven (425°F) for 15 minutes. Turn the turkey to the other side and roast it for 15 minutes more. Reduce the heat to moderately slow (325°F), turn the turkey breast side up, and arrange a cheesecloth soaked in melted butter (using the remaining ½ stick of butter) over it. Roast the turkey, basting it every 20 minutes, for 3 hours and 30 minutes to 4 hours more, or until the juices run clear when the fleshy part of the thigh is pricked with a skewer or a thermometer inserted in the fleshy part of the thigh registers 185°F. Transfer the turkey to a warmed platter and remove the cheesecloth and trussing strings.

   Step 5

   Skim the fat from the pan juices and deglaze the pan with ½ cup dry white wine or dry sherry over moderately high heat, stirring in the brown bits clinging to the bottom and sides of the pan. Add 1½ recipes (3 cups) velouté sauce, heated, reduce the heat to moderate, and bring the sauce to a boil. Add 1 cup cream and salt and pepper to taste, thin the sauce to the desired consistency with additional cream and stock, and strain it into a heated sauceboat. Drape a cranberry rope over the turkey.