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Thanksgiving is one of our favorite holidays – we love being able to get our whole family together and reflect on all the things in our life that we’re grateful for. While it’s a celebration we look forward to all year, it’s also still a day that’s easy to get stressed out about; there’s so much focus on the food and making everything perfectly, that we always come back to our tried-and-true, foolproof recipes that never let us down.

Below, we’re sharing our deliciously simple (and simply delicious) roasted turkey…the result is amazingly flavorful and moist, and the cooking process doesn’t have us pulling our hair out. We’ve been making it like this for years and we don’t see ourselves stopping anytime soon!

Classic Roast Turkey

Serves 10-12

Ingredients

  • 1 12-pound turkey (thawed, if frozen)
  • 2 white onions, chopped into wedges
  • 2 ribs celery, chopped
  • 2 carrots, chopped
  • 6 sprigs rosemary
  • 6 sprigs thyme
  • extra virgin olive oil, as needed
  • kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
  • carrots, onions, sweet potatoes, potatoes, optional

Directions

*Cooking time depends on size of turkey; generally 13-15 minutes per pound is a good rule of thumb

  1. Preheat oven to 400º F.
  2. Make sure main cavity and neck cavity are empty and that the heart, giblets, liver and neck are removed.
  3. Rinse turkey with cool water and pat dry with paper towels, then rub bird all over (inside and out) with olive oil.
  4. Season generously with salt and pepper (and/or rosemary and thyme) and place on a roasting rack in a large roasting pan. (You can place chopped carrots, onions, or potatoes underneath the roasting rack if you want to roast your vegetables at the same time.)
  5. Stuff main cavity with onions, celery, carrots, rosemary and thyme, then use kitchen twine to truss the legs. Optional: cover cavity with aluminum foil so aromatics stay in.
  6. Roast for 20 minutes at 400º F, then reduce temperature to 325º and roast for another 1 1/2-2 hours.
  7. Reduce heat again to 250º F and cook until internal temperature of the thickest part of the turkey thigh reaches 165º F.Note: if turkey starts to burn, baste with drippings and cover loosely with aluminum foil.
  8. Remove roasting dish from oven and let turkey rest at least 20 minutes before carving. Slice and serve with roasted veggies.

Recipe adapted fromReal Simple

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