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Thawing and Cooking the Bird (followed by a recipe I found on line)

Once I invited a lot of people for Thanksgiving. I rented a table and table cloth, people brought their favorite dishes. I roasted the turkey -- but it wouldn't get done. I still am not sure what I did wrong --either the oven wasn't working or the turkey was somewhat frozen. Dinner was two hours late -- for Christmas my friend gave me a meat thermometer. Be sure to have your turkey thawed and if you have never used your oven try it out ahead of time. Bake some prepared cookie dough and see if they get done in the time specified. If the burn, your oven is hot -- if they don't get done, your oven is cold. You can also buy an oven thermometer. But then you don't get to eat the cookies.




Thaw Turkey
The best way to thaw the bird is in the refrigerator on a tray, allowing 24 hours for each 5 pounds; a 16-pound bird, therefore, will take a little more than three days to defrost.
If you've just bought a frozen bird, use the cold-water method -- in your bathtub or kitchen sink -- changing the water every 30 minutes. It's a lot of work, but you'll get the job done safely. Figure on 30 minutes per pound of turkey: A 16-pound bird will take eight hours.

Roast Turkey
Roasting times may vary greatly, depending on a number of variables that affect the cooking time such as the shape of the turkey breast, the proportion of meat to bone, the variations in different ovens, the altitude, and if the turkey is fresh or frozen and then thawed. Adding the confusion is that almost every source providing roasting times is different from one another. Listed below are roasting times that can be used as a general guideline. However, the only true gauge for determining proper doneness is with a meat thermometer. The breast must reach an internal temperature of 170°F.
A shallow baking pan will yield the best results when roasting a turkey breast, allowing air to flow completely around the turkey breast.

Roasting Times for a Turkey Breast Cooked in a 325°F Conventional Oven
Weight Unstuffed Stuffed
2 to 3 pounds 1½ to 2 hours not generally applicable
4 to 6 pounds 1½ to 2¼ hours not generally applicable
7 to 8 pounds 2¼ to 3¼ hours 3 to 4 hours

Thaw turkey as directed. Put a few stalks of celery in the bottom of a glass backing pan to serve as a rack. Place turkey breast skin side up on the celery. Cover loosely with tin foil so the skin doesn’t cook too quickly (remove foil for last 30 minutes to get brown). After the turkey is cooked, set aside on a plate while you make gravy.

Just one of many online turkey recipes – (Google great turkey breast recipe)

 Herb Roasted Turkey Breast


Herb Oil:

    2 tbsp fresh rosemary, minced

    2 tbsp fresh thyme, minced

    1 tsp fresh oregano, minced

    3 tbsp olive oil

Rub:

    2 tsp kosher salt

    1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper

    1 1/2 tsp granulated garlic

    1 tsp smoked paprika
    
1 tsp sweet paprika

    1/2 tsp red chile flakes

1 bone-in turkey breast

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Add the ingredients for the herb oil into a small bowl. Stir to combine thoroughly.
In a different small bowl, add all of the ingredients for the rub. Stir to combine thoroughly.
Place the turkey breast on sheet or roasting pan. Using your fingers, gently work your way beneath the skin of the turkey to create an air pocket between the meat and the skin. Do not fully remove the skin.
Rub the herb oil into every crevice of the turkey breast, making sure to season liberally beneath the skin. (This is the only way to actually get the seasoning to the meat itself.) Next, use the spice rub to season the every inch of the turkey, again, making sure to get a liberal amount of seasoning beneath the skin.
Make sure the breast is skin-side up on the roasting pan, then place into a preheated 425 degree oven. Roast the turkey breast for 45-55 minutes at 425 until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast reads 170 degrees. Make sure that the thermometer does not touch any bones as this will skew the reading. Remove roasted turkey breast from oven and cover loosely. Allow breast to cool for at least 10 minutes before slicing. Enjoy!
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