Apple Rosemary Brined Roast Turkey
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
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Yield: 1 12 to 14-pound turkey
 
Flavorful and juicy Apple Rosemary Brined Roast Turkey will make a gorgeous centerpiece for your family’s holiday table.
Ingredients
  • 12 cups (2.8 L) cold water, divided
  • ¾ cup coarse kosher salt
  • ¾ cup white sugar
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 1 to 2 sprigs fresh rosemary, lightly crushed in your hands to release their oils
  • 1 medium onion, peeled and quartered
  • 4 large cloves garlic, peeled and cracked but left whole
  • 2 teaspoons whole peppercorns
  • 4 cups ice
  • 2 cups (475 mL) fresh apple cider
  • ¾ cup (180 mL) organic raw, unfiltered apple cider vinegar
  • 1 (12 to 14-pound) Diestel Family Turkey Ranch Organic Young Turkey, giblets removed
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted grass-fed butter, at room temperature
Instructions
  1. Add 4 cups (950 mL) water, salt, sugar, bay leaves, rosemary sprigs, onion, garlic, and peppercorns to a medium saucepan over medium heat. Continue heating (stirring constantly), until the salt and sugar are dissolved. Turn off the heat and stir in the ice, and then the apple cider and apple cider vinegar.
  2. Pour the mixture into a vessel large enough to hold your turkey (I use the biggest stock pot I have), and add the remaining 8 cups (1.9 L) of water.
  3. Gently slide the turkey into the brine, adding more cold water if the bird isn’t fully immersed. Cover the vessel and refrigerate overnight (about 12 hours).
  4. The next day, preheat the oven to 325F and prepare a roasting pan large enough to hold the turkey. (If you don’t have a roasting rack for the bottom of your roasting pan, you can scrunch up foil for the bottom of the pan so the turkey isn’t sitting in the bottom of the pan.)
  5. Remove the turkey from the brine, rinse it, pat it dry, truss it, and place it into the prepared roasting pan (breast-side-up). Use your fingers to smoosh the butter onto the skin.
  6. Roast until the internal temperature between the thigh and the wing and the thickest part of the breast reaches 165F on an instant-read thermometer, about 3 hours 15 minutes, to 3 hours 30 minutes.
  7. Lightly drape a piece of foil over the turkey and let it set 15 minutes before carving.
Recipe by An Edible Mosaic™ at https://www.anediblemosaic.com/apple-rosemary-brined-roast-turkey/