The weather has noticeably changed here in southwest Florida. With the passing of our wet, humid weather, our food and thoughts turn to fall. What better time to look toward Thanksgiving and some of the great foods that can easily (with a little effort) be prepared in your homes for family!

It’s all about the bird…. For many, the prospect of roasting a whole turkey can be a daunting experience. With countless articles and suggestions from using an immersion circulator to Sous-Vide to deep-frying in a bubbling cauldron of oil, what is the go-to method for making that center-of-the-table bird stand out?

Here at BBCulinary, we believe in a classically roasted turkey. Whether for the big show of Thanksgiving for over 1,000 members or for Friday evening in the ballroom, we believe in a long slow roast in the oven. Our birds are seasoned on the outside with kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper and garlic powder and stuffed with a blend of celery, onion, carrot, garlic cloves, rosemary, thyme and parsley.

They head to the oven and are slowly brought up to 155˚F in a 325˚F oven. They then rest for an hour at room temperature in a blanket of melted butter. During this time, the internal temperature will rise to 165 degrees, then gently fall as all the juices are absorbed into the meat. Right before serving, we put them back into a 350˚F oven for 15 minutes to crisp up the skin and bring them back to serving temperature. Don’t forget to use those roasting juices to make – or enhance your turkey gravy.

If you ever have any questions or comments regarding the culinary program here at Bonita Bay Club, please do not hesitate to reach out via email or call. I enjoy giving behind-the-scenes tours of our back-of-the-house facilities for anyone interested in seeing the operation.

By Chef Richard Brumm, WCMC, CEC, CCA, AAC