She Strengthens

Streamline Your Thanksgiving Prep with This Game-Changing Recipe

Are you tired of spending hours in the kitchen on Thanksgiving, juggling multiple dishes and timelines? We’ve got the solution for you! Our innovative recipe allows you to cook both the turkey and stuffing in a single pan, saving you time and effort.

The Secret to Success: Spatchcocking

Spatchcocking, a clever technique that ensures even cooking of both white and dark meat, is the key to this recipe’s success. By removing the backbone and flattening the turkey, you’ll achieve a perfectly cooked bird with minimal fuss.

A Flavorful Stuffing to Die For

While the turkey roasts, a bed of butternut squash and bread cubes catches all the delicious pan juices, creating a flavorful stuffing that’s sure to impress. And the best part? You can broil the stuffing right in the roasting pan to get some crispy surface bits.

Turkey Gravy Made Easy

No need to worry about drippings – our recipe allows you to make the turkey gravy ahead of time and reheat it when you’re ready to eat. It’s one less thing to stress about on the big day!

Recipe Details

Yield: 8 servings
Difficulty: Easy
Total Time: 2 hours 40 minutes

Ingredients

For the stuffing:

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 4 medium celery stalks, diced
• 2 medium yellow onions, diced
• 2 teaspoons coarsely chopped fresh thyme leaves
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 (1-pound) loaf day-old unsliced bread, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1 medium butternut squash (about 3 pounds), peeled and cut into large dice

For the turkey:

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon coarsely chopped fresh thyme leaves
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more as needed
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more as needed
• 1 (12- to 15-pound) natural turkey

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 450°F and arrange a rack in the lower third.
2. Prepare the Stuffing: Melt the butter over medium heat in a 16-by-13-inch roasting pan set across 2 burners. Add the celery, onion, and thyme, seasoning with salt and pepper. Cook until the vegetables have softened, about 6 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, add the bread and butternut squash, and stir to combine; set aside.
3. Prepare the Turkey: In a small bowl, mix the butter, mustard, thyme, and measured salt and pepper until well combined. Remove the turkey’s giblets and neck, then rinse out the cavity and pat the turkey dry with paper towels.
4. Spatchcock the Turkey: Place the turkey on a cutting board breast-side up with the legs toward you. Gently pull 1 leg away from the body and, using a knife, slice through the skin between the leg and body to expose the thigh. Repeat with the other leg. Using kitchen shears, cut along the side of the breast through the ribs from the bottom cavity up toward the wing, stopping when you reach the wing joint. Repeat on the other side. Open the turkey up by pulling the breast up and away from you. Flip the turkey over and cut through the backbone right above the legs to separate the turkey into 2 parts.
5. Season and Roast the Turkey: Season the turkey generously all over with salt and pepper. Using your hands, loosen the skin on the breast and evenly distribute half of the butter mixture under the skin. Spread the remaining butter mixture evenly over the skin on the legs. Tuck the wings behind the breast. Place the turkey pieces skin-side up on top of the stuffing in the roasting pan, overlapping the breast piece over the legs as needed.
6. Roast and Finish: Roast the turkey for 30 minutes, then lower the temperature to 350°F. Continue to roast until a meat thermometer inserted into the inner thigh registers 165°F to 170°F and the juices run clear, about 60 to 75 minutes more. Remove the roasting pan from the oven and transfer the turkey pieces to a cutting board. Let them rest for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, finish the stuffing by broiling it in the roasting pan until the bread is deeply browned in spots and the liquid in the pan has evaporated, about 5 to 6 minutes more.
7. Serve and Enjoy: Carve the turkey and serve with the stuffing on the side. Happy Thanksgiving!