Two Ways to Roast a Holiday Turkey

Ingredients:

• Two turkeys weighing 4.5-5.5 kg each.
• 2 tbsp celery salt
• 2 tablespoons granulated garlic
• 2 tbsp. l. granulated onion
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped, + 10 sprigs
• 1/4 cup fresh tarragon
• 1/4 cup fresh oregano
• 2 tbsp fresh thyme leaves, chopped, + 10 sprigs
• Zest of 12 lemons
• 2 shallots, chopped
• 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 carrots, coarsely chopped
• 2 medium onions, cut into quarters
• 2 fennel roots, cut into quarters
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 2 cups of white wine

Preparation:

1. The morning before roasting, carve one of the turkeys. Remove the backbone by making 4-cm (1.5 in) cuts from front to back along the backbone (the side opposite the breast). Remove the backbone and set aside for broth, if desired. Place the turkey breast-side up on a large, flat surface. Place a clean kitchen towel on top and press firmly to flatten the breast. Season both sides of the turkey with 1 tablespoon each of celery salt, granulated garlic, granulated onion, and black pepper.
2. Sprinkle the whole turkey inside and out with 1 tablespoon of black pepper and the remaining celery salt, granulated garlic, and onion. Refrigerate both turkeys overnight, uncovered, to allow the skin to dry out.
3. The next day, let the turkey come to room temperature for 1.5 hours.
4. Position one rack in the oven's lowest position and the other in the top third. Preheat the oven to 200°C.
5. In a small bowl, combine chopped parsley, tarragon, oregano, chopped thyme, lemon zest, and shallot with a pinch of salt and pepper. The salt will help draw out moisture and flavor from the mixture. Add olive oil to form a paste. Divide the mixture among the turkeys and rub them on all sides. Season with salt and pepper. Halve 3 lemons. Stuff the cavity of a whole turkey with the lemon halves and sprigs of parsley and thyme.
6. Divide the carrots, onion, and fennel between two baking dishes. Place the cut-up turkey, skin side up, on top of the vegetables in one dish. Place the whole turkey, breast side up, on top of the vegetables in the second dish. Divide the broth and wine between the two dishes.
7. Place the whole turkey on the bottom rack of the oven and the cut-up turkey on the top rack. Roast, basting with the pan juices every 30 minutes and adding a little more liquid to the bottom of the pan as needed to prevent the vegetables from burning. Keep an eye on the turkey: when the bird is nicely browned, remove the pan and carefully move the top rack to the middle position (see Note).
8. Transfer the whole turkey to the middle rack and the trimmed turkey to the bottom rack and continue roasting until the internal temperature of the thickest part of the thigh reaches 155°F (68°C), about 2 hours (10 minutes per pound) for a 12-pound trimmed turkey and 2 hours 25 minutes for a whole turkey, for a total of up to 3 hours (12-15 minutes per pound). Let the turkey rest for at least 1 hour before serving.
   
   Note
   
   If you don't want to move the hot oven rack after the top turkey is nicely browned, simply cover it with foil for the remainder of the roasting time.