- 1 (12-to 14-pounds) turkey at room temperature 1 hour, neck and giblets (excluding liver) reserved for turkey stock
- 1 apple, cut into chunks
- 1 small onion, quartered
- 1 small bunch thyme
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup unfiltered apple cider
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1/2 stick unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons
- 2 cups dry white wine
- Melted unsalted butter if necessary
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- About 4 cups hot turkey giblet stock
- Equipment: a 17- by 14-inch flameproof roasting pan with a flat rack; kitchen String; a 2-quart measuring cup or a fat separator
- Preheat oven to 425°F with rack in lower third.
- Rinse turkey inside and out and pat dry. Put turkey on rack in roasting pan and season inside and out with 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Put apple, onion, and thyme in large cavity. Fold neck skin under body, then tuck wing tips under breast and tie drumsticks together with string.
- Add water to pan and roast, without basting, 1 hour.
- Meanwhile, boil cider and sugar in a small heavy saucepan, stirring until sugar has dissolved, until reduced to about 1/4 cup, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in butter 1 tablespoon at a time, whisking until emulsified. Let glaze stand until ready to use.
- After turkey has roasted 1 hour, rotate pan 180 degrees. Roast, without basting, 40 minutes more.
- Brush turkey all over with all of glaze and continue to roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted into fleshy part of each thigh (test both; do not touch bone) registers 165 to 170°F, 5 to 15 minutes more (total roasting time: 1 3/4 to 2 hours).
- Carefully tilt turkey so juices from inside large cavity run into pan. Transfer turkey so juices from inside large cavity run into pan. Transfer turkey to a platter (reserve juices in roasting pan) and let rest, uncovered, 30 minutes (temperature of thigh meat will rise to 170 to 175&Deg;F). Discard string.
- Strain pan juices through a fine-mesh sieve into 2-quart measure and skim off fat (or use a fat separator), reserving fat.
- Straddle roasting pan across 2 burners, then add wine and deglaze pan by boiling over high heat, stirring and scraping up brown bits, 2 minutes. Strain through sieve into measuring cup containing pan juices.
- Put 1/2 cup reserved fat (if there is less, add melted butter) in a 4-quart heavy saucepan and whisk in flour.
- Cook roux over medium heat, whisking, 3 minutes. Add pan juices and stock in a fast stream, whisking constantly, then bring to a boil, whisking occasionally. Briskly simmer, whisking occasionally, until gravy is thickened, 10 to 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
- Serve turkey with gravy.
- Josmeyer Les Folastries Gewürztraminer '05