Roasted Turkey

1 Whole turkey
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
salt and black pepper
4-6 cups vegetable stock
8 cups prepared stuffing
cheesecloth

Picking out your turkey:
A good rule of thumb is to purchase a turkey that is about 1 1/2 to 2 lbs. per person. That will allow for some leftovers as well.

Thawing your turkey:
When thawing your turkey, thaw in your refrigerator on a large enough platter to fit, on the lowest shelf. Allow one day to thaw PER every five pounds.

To prepare your turkey:
Rinse your turkey and pat dry with paper towels.

Place turkey breast side up on a rack in a roasting pan.

Rub the entire outside of the turkey with softened butter, covering it. Season with salt and pepper.

Stuff turkey firmly, filling both cavities, front and back. (Filling the neck cavity gives the breast a nice rounded shape.)

Submerge cheesecloth in melted butter, then spread cheesecloth over turkey. This step will give your turkey the perfect browned skin that is so desirable. Baste the remaining the melted butter over the cheesecloth.

Pour the vegetable stock into the bottom of the pan to keep the drippings from burning. As the stock evaporates, replace with more, two cups at a time. This is what you will use to baste your turkey.

Roasting your turkey:
Place in a preheated oven and bake at 350 degrees on the lowest rack.

Baste every half hour to hour while it is cooking.

The turkey is finished when the internal temperature reaches 170 degrees F for turkey breast meat and 180 degrees F for turkey thigh meat. (Expect around 3 1/2 to 4 hours for an 18 lb. turkey.)

Remove from oven and allow turkey to cool a minimum of 20 minutes before carving.