the perfect turkey, the sad Christmas

Calvin put it wisely when he said, "i always keep my expectations low, that way i'm always satisfied". 

Christmas eve before going to sleep I lovingly looked at the tree, all peaceful and quiet and ready for the children. Then when they woke up, they tore into the room and the first thing they notice is Santa "forgot" to move the pickle ornament and put a dollar bill in it. 

Great. Failed again. Way to go Santa, you stink.

Luckily they were distracted by their presents and for the first time in our family we tried to stay home and relax but our kids wanted MORE presents from MORE family. Because you know, opening presents Christmas eve from Great Grandma and Christmas morning isn't enough. Insert self loathing and the irrational fear that I have ruined my children and turned them into materialistic monsters for the rest of their lives. Oh, and did I mention my parents are in Guatemala? Yeah, that wasn't so fun either.

Of course I was cranky the rest of the day which makes Ty cranky for the rest of the day and voila! Welcome to holidays as a parent!

But...BUT! I found the best turkey recipe and I can't wait to use it for Thanksgiving. I will never roast a turkey on Christmas day again, holy work batman. But I've made this recipe twice and I can't believe how flavorful and moist the turkey turns out for such a simple recipe. 

Have a happy new year and make this turkey:

The Perfect Roast Turkey Recipe

Prep time:  20 mins

Cook time:  3 hours 30 mins

Total time:  3 hours 50 mins

Serves: 16

Ingredients

1 15lb turkey

1 stick of butter

salt

pepper

onion powder

3 cloves of garlic minced

2 onions chopped

3 carrots chopped

3 stalks of celery chopped

1 cup of water

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 500 F.

Remove the gizzard and giblets from inside the turkey's cavity.

Thoroughly clean, rinse and dry the outside and cavity of the turkey.

Lather the turkey with at least ½ stick of butter and try to get under the skin of the turkey as well.

Generously sprinkle salt, pepper and onion powder over the lathered butter.

Rub the seasoning evenly over the outside of the turkey.

Place the rest of the butter inside the cavity of the turkey.

Add 1 chopped onion and 3 cloves of garlic minced.

Pour 1 cup of water into the bottom of the roasting pan and add the other chopped onion, 3 chopped carrots and 3 stalks of celery chopped.

Roast turkey at 500 F for about 20 minutes or until the turkey begins to brown.

Reduce heat to 350 F and continue to roast.

Baste the turkey every 30 minutes with the drippings and liquid in the bottom of the roasting pan.

The turkey is done once a thermometer stuck into the thickest part of the bird reads 155 to 165 F.

It should take about 3 hours and 30 minutes for the bird to cook, but make sure to use a thermometer.

Remove the turkey from the oven and let set for 20 minutes before carving.