Healthy Recipe: Herb Roasted Turkey with Cranberry Glaze

In this article, you’ll learn and discover how to make a delicious healthy meal called herb-roasted turkey with cranberry glaze.  A great meal for Thanksgiving dinner.

• 6 to 12-pound turkey
• 3/4 teaspoon each salt & black pepper
• 2 tablespoons herbs de Provence
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons butter, room temperature
• 3 shallots, peeled and quartered
• 1 lemon, cut into eight wedges
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and quartered
• 4 sprigs rosemary
• 8 sprigs thyme
• 1 bottle Fischer & Weiser Spiced Wine Cranberry Sauce

Directions

1. Begin thawing the turkey 3 to 4 days in advance of cooking. Set in a roasting pan and thaw in the refrigerator in its original packaging. The night before cooking, remove from the packaging, remove the additional turkey parts from the cavity of the turkey and rinse the inside and outside of the turkey.
2. Using paper towels, dry the turkey completely and place in a roasting pan. In a small bowl combine the salt, pepper, herbs de Provence and olive oil. Using clean hands, rub into the skin of the turkey, around the breast, legs, wings, and cavity. Also, carefully rub some of the oil mixtures under the skin of the breast. Rub the butter over the turkey. Stuff into the cavity the shallots, lemon, garlic, rosemary, and thyme. Tie the ends of the legs of the turkey together with kitchen twine. Place the turkey back into the refrigerator until ready to cook.
3. Take the turkey out of the refrigerator 30 to 45 minutes before cooking and preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place an instant-read meat thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh. Place in the oven for 20 minutes then reduce the temperature to 350 degrees and continue to roast. Keep an eye on the skin.
4. When the turkey begins to turn a light golden brown color, cover the entire turkey with a large piece of tented foil. When the turkey reaches an internal temperature of 155 degrees remove from the oven and using a basting brush baste with the cranberry sauce. If you plan to make gravy from the turkey drippings and will be basting with the cranberry glaze, ladle off some of the pan juices before applying the glaze.
5. Return the turkey to the oven and continue to lightly baste every ten minutes until the turkey reaches 165 degrees. Recover with foil if necessary to avoid over browning. When ready, remove from the oven and let the turkey rest, covered with foil, for 30 minutes.
6. Discard the shallots, garlic, lemons, and herbs that were stuffed inside the cavity before serving