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MEQUON - TODAY'S TMJ4 went out Wednesday night with the sole intent of finding usable turkey preparation tips for you. At Sendik's on Port Washington Road, we found a veritable plethora of turkey preparation tips.

Some were simple.

Meat cutter Vinney Farnsworth is adamant about one thing. "Cut the breast first," he said emphatically. "That's the best way to go."
 
Jackie Allan suggests putting various fruits underneath the turkey skin to keep the bird moist. 
 
That's when we met Jonathan Crawford who provided us with detailed instructions on cooking the bird and preparing the gravy. Both recipes are listed below. He assures us that people will be down on their knees begging for the recipes after you serve Thanksgiving dinner!

1. Pack the turkey cavities (both ends) with lemons and yellow onions cut in half or quarters. As the turkey cooks, these will not only steam and flavor the turkey from the inside, but also provide incredible drippings for making gravy.

2. Place the turkey on a rack in your roasting pan so it remains well above the drippings below.

3. Tent the bird with foil (some people use a paper grocery bag) and place a small dish of water in the oven outside of the roasting pan to keep things moist. Follow the cooking instructions that come with the bird.

Ingredients
1 stick of butter
flour for rue
turkey drippings
1 tablespoon rosemary
1 tablespoon sage
poultry season (optional)
chicken bouillon cubes (optional)
Madera cooking wine

How to Cook
1. In the last half hour before the turkey comes out of the oven, prepare a gravy "rue" by melting a stick of butter in a sauce pan, and slowly adding flour until the mixture is like a wet paste.

2. After removing the bird and rack from the pan, pour the drippings into a gravy separator to separate the fat from the broth and then discard the excess fat. Return the dripping broth to your roasting pan.

3. Place the pan on the stove top and turn the burner's heat to "high." Add a table spoon of rosemary and a tablespoon of sage to the lemonee dripping broth. You can also add some poultry seasoning if you like.

4. Reduce the heat slightly and cook-down the broth, periodically sampling a teaspoon for its flavor. If it's a bit weak, add a couple of chicken bouillon cubes to fortify if you like. Cooking the broth gets the seasonings to open up. A couple of swigs of Madera cooking wine will add an exotic edge to the gravy too (this is the secret, my friends, Madera.) Madera is a type of cooking wine and there are many vintners of it. You can find it at Pick 'n Save in the beer and wine area.

5. When the dripping broth's flavor is strong, turn up the heat again so the broth is bubbling slightly and start adding the rue a spoonful at a time, making sure to stir it with a whisk to get any lumps out. Add enough rue to thicken the gravy to your taste. Voila! Pour the gravy into a serving vessel and head for the table!

The combination of lemons, onions, the turkey's own juices along with the other special ingredients will make a gravy unlike any you've ever had! Goes great on top of the stuffing too.