Pflugerville resident Judy Garrison sends this month’s recipe for ta Thanksgiving turkey that she says tastes just like the ones her grandmother made when she was a young girl, a recipe from her great-grandfather .
Makes: 8 servings
Ingredients
• 1 stick unsalted butter
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
• 1 fresh turkey (10 to 12 pounds)
• Table salt
• Watkins black pepper
• 1 large bunch fresh thyme
• 1 whole lemon, halved
• 1 Spanish onion, quartered
• 1 head of garlic, halved crosswise
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Add the zest and juice of the lemon and 1 teaspoon of thyme leaves to the butter mixture. Set aside.
Remove the giblets from the turkey and wash the turkey inside and out. Remove any excess fat and pinfeathers, and pat the outside dry. Place the turkey in a large roasting pan.
Liberally salt and pepper the inside of the turkey cavity. Stuff the cavity with the bunch of thyme, halved lemon, quartered onion, and the garlic. Brush the outside of the turkey with the butter mixture and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Tie the legs together with string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the turkey.
Roast the turkey about 2 1/2 hours, or until the juices run clear when you cut between the leg and thigh. Remove the turkey to a cutting board and cover with aluminum foil for 20 minutes.
Then, slice and serve.