Holiday Roast Turkey With Old-Fashioned Corn Bread Stuffing

Old-fashioned cooks sometimes added eggs and baking powder to their corn bread stuffing to give it a fluffier texture. The stuffing in this recipe is a delicious example.

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped
• 5 cups crumbled corn bread
• 5 cups toasted fresh breadcrumbs
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning

• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• One 12-pound fresh (or frozen and thawed) turkey
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• Giblet Gravy

How to make it  About 3 1/2 hours



• 1

  Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook 5 minutes or until softened. Remove from heat. Combine corn bread, breadcrumbs, baking powder, poultry seasoning and pepper in a large bowl. Stir in onion mixture. Whisk broth and egg together in a small bowl. Stir into corn bread mixture. Toss to coat well.
• 2

  Heat oven to 325°F. Rinse turkey; drain and pat dry with paper towels. Remove neck and giblets; set aside to make Giblet Gravy. Stuff and truss turkey. Place turkey, breast side up, on a rack in a large roasting pan. Brush with oil. Insert meat thermometer in turkey thigh without touching bone. Spoon remaining stuffing into a lightly greased 2-quart casserole; cover with foil and refrigerate.
• 3

  Roast turkey 3 to 3 1/2 hours or until thermometer registers 180°F, basting often and covering with foil to prevent over-browning if necessary. Bake the covered casserole of stuffing alongside turkey during the last 30 minutes of roasting, adding an additional 2 to 3 tablespoons chicken broth if stuffing is dry. Let turkey stand 15 to 20 minutes before carving.
• 4

  Meanwhile, cook neck and giblets for Giblet Gravy (see recipe below). Reserve 2 tablespoons of the pan drippings from roast turkey for Giblet Gravy. Prepare gravy. Carve turkey, discarding skin. Serve turkey and stuffing with gravy.