by Therese de Grace
Thanksgiving in my mind is the only real holiday, it doesn’t matter what son of Christ, coconut or chocolate Buddha you worship we should all be Thankful at least once a year goddamn it!  Having a family with a population of a small country I have the pleasure of celebrating both American and Canadian Thanksgiving.

Our friends and family to the South share the turkey as their Icon of this Fete, but that is where the similarity ends. Our holiday envelops the concept of the harvest with fresh vegetables, succulent roast turkey and various pumpkin concoctions.  The Americans kick off there Christmas shopping season, deep fry turkeys and finish various once healthy vegetables with marshmallows.

The Culinary spectacle of deep frying a turkey must take place outside but the adventurous (I imagine them from Arkansas, no reason) decide to ignore this advice and this is what happens: the cavity of the turkey fills with oil sort of like lava and a similar volcanic eruption takes place. The result of this fiasco is several home fires and third degree burns all for love of moist turkey breast.  Dude! Roast that bitch in your oven, make some gravy, or just go to f*&king Denny’s for Christ’s sake, it’s just Turkey!  The alternate is trying the recipe below which involves brining your turkey, a safe and easy way to ensure moist turkey meat.

Happy Turkey Time! 

Roasted Turkey with Smoked Bacon and Chestnuts

You will require the following ingredients:

For the turkey:

One fresh or defrosted 8-10lb turkey
3 Tablespoons of sea salt
1 lb of melted butter
2 bottles of beer
2 lemons cut in half
3 bay leaves
1 teaspoon of crushed peppercorns
6 cloves of crushed garlic
Whole sprig of rosemary 

For the stuffing:

2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
2 small white onions minced
6 stalks of minced celery
2 cloves of minced garlic
½ a cup of brandy
1 lb of melted butter
1 loaf of bread cut into one by one chunk
1 bunch of chopped sage
1 cup of uncooked smoked bacon minced
3 cups of chopped cooked chestnuts
Salt and pepper 

Extras

1 lb of melted butter
3 medium carrots cut into long strips
6 stalks of celery cut into long strips
Whole sprigs of herbs 

Method:

Preparing and brining your turkey:

The day before you are set to cook your turkey remove the giblets (the bag with the organ meat) and discard.  Take a container that will fit your turkey and make sure that has enough of a lip so that you can fill it with liquid, place your turkey in the centre of your container.  Pour in all of your ingredients and then add enough water to at least partially submerge your turkey.  Allow your turkey to sit in the brining liquid for a full day before cooking flipping the turkey at least once during that time. 

Stuffing:

In a sauté pan heat your olive oil and add onions, celery garlic and bacon, cook until you achieve a golden brown colour and deglaze with brandy.  In a large bowl add your bread cubes, chestnuts, chopped sage, sauté mixture and cover with butter tossing until every piece of bread is coated.  Adjust with salt and pepper to taste. 

Stuffing and Roasting Your Turkey

Using plastic gloves remove your turkey from your brining liquid.  Arrange Slices of carrot, celery and herbs along the bottom of your roasting pan.  Begin to stuff the turkey filling the cavity fully and using the extra flap of skin to cover the opening.  Place your turkey in your roasting pan and brush fully with butter. 

Allow your turkey to cook in a 400 degree oven for at least 3 and a half hours brushing with butter every 40 minutes.  To safely ensure your turkey is fully cooked a meat thermometer should read 180F or 82C when pushed into the inner thigh of the turkey.  Allow your turkey to rest for at least 20 minutes before carving.