Roasted Turkey & Gravy

Place 1 lb of soft butter in large bowl. Add a salt and pepper and touch of EVO (2-3 Tbsp) to stop the butter from burning. Zest 2 lemons and add their juice. Add 3 cloves of garlic, (Puréed) and a generous handful of coarsely chopped parsley.
Season the Turkey inside the cavity. Half 2 onions and pop them in. Also put in a lemon and a couple of bay leaves.
Open up the skin of the turkey with a rubber spatula or your fingers. Don’t rip the skin. Do both sides but leave a bit of skin still stuck to the turkey. Get a golf ball sized lob of butter and roll it in your hands. Slip it between the turkey and the skin as you pat it down. Pull back the skin and use your left hand to press the butter towards the back of the bird, working it from the top until it slides all the way down. Turn the bird around and repeat. Take the rest of the butter and massage it over the top of the bird’s breasts and wings. Add a touch of EVO to the top of the bird to protect it and make the skin nice and crispy.
Place in the oven at 450ºF (235ºC) for 30 minutes, to brown the bird quickly. Turn oven down to 350ºF (175ºC). Remove turkey, baste, then add bacon to the top of the bird, about 5-6 strips. Cook @ 15 minutes per pound. Place back in the oven (no lid) and baste every 30 minutes. Internal temperature of bird must reach 185ºF (85ºC) before it’s done.
Remove turkey from oven and stick a fork in the bottom of the thigh. If the juices run clear, the bird is done. Remove the onion and roasted lemon from the turkey. Place bird on platter and let it rest for 2 hours.

The Turkey Gravy
Remove turkey fat from tray and place in bowl. Put tray on stove top over medium heat. Chop the cooked bacon into bite sized pieces and place in tray. Then chop the roasted onions and place in tray. Poke the lemon and squeeze 1/2 the juice into tray. Add a couple of sprigs of Rosemary and fry. Chop up 3 fresh tomatoes and toss in as well. Lob off the wings and pope’s nose and fry that as well for about 5-8 minutes. Pour in 1 cup of dry cider and as it starts to reduce, pour in the resting juices from the turkey as well. When the liquid has reduced by half, crush the veggies with a masher to extract their flavour. Pour in a cup of chicken stock and reduce again. Run through civ using the back of a ladle to press down and extract all the juices. Make a slurry and add to thicken gravy (optional).

Stuffing