Recipe: Rich Turkey Gravy

A New Way With Old-Fashioned Gravy
From the American Institute for Cancer Research

For beginning cooks, gravy making is one of the more challenging parts of preparing a traditional holiday meal. Even experienced cooks find the last-minute steps stressful trying to drain off and separate the fat and pan juices, and make enough of a lump-free gravy - all the while juggling to get the dinner to the table.

Today, along with these concerns, we face the nutritional nightmare of the fat content of a classic gravy made with pan drippings and flour. Using pan juices alone, without added fat and flour, is always a possibility, but I would hardly call it gravy.

To keep all three traditional ingredients - because nothing beats the flavor and silken texture they create - here is a recipe for a healthier version, in abundant amount. You can make it one or two days ahead, or assign its preparation to someone else and reduce your stress level.

There are two keys to this simple, good gravy. The first is using a really rich stock. The second is thickening it by pur eing some of the vegetables used to make the stock.

If you are roasting a very big bird, you can use the parts normally reserved for gravy - the neck, giblets and wing tips - plus extra wings. But this means cooking the broth while the bird is in the oven - essentially, at the last minute. Instead, I prefer buying about four extra wings and using them to make the stock a day or more ahead.

Another reason I like this gravy is that you end up with extra stock. This comes in handy for making more gravy, if necessary, for the leftovers. It also gives you the base for a lovely turkey and rice soup.

Rich Turkey Gravy

Turkey Broth
2 pounds turkey parts, including neck, wings, thighs and giblets
1 medium carrot, peeled and sliced
1 celery stalk, halved crosswise
1 medium leek, chopped
1 large onion, quartered
1 small parsnip, peeled and sliced
3-4 sprigs flat-leaf parsley sprigs
2 large garlic cloves

Gravy
2 cups turkey broth
1 Tbsp. turkey fat
2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
salt and freshly ground pepper

For the broth, combine turkey parts, carrot, celery, leek, onion, parsnip, parsley and garlic in a large pot. Add 12 cups water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer gently for 2 hours. During the first 30 minutes, skim off any foam that rises to the surface.

Strain broth into a bowl. Reserve carrot, onion, parsnip and garlic. Discard other vegetables and turkey. Cool broth to room temperature. Refrigerate, overnight if necessary, until fat congeals. Lift off fat, using a spoon, and reserve it in a small bowl.

Puree reserved carrot, onion and parsnip in blender or food processor, along with 1/2 cup of turkey broth. Blend in remaining broth.

Heat the tablespoon of turkey fat in a saucepan. Using a wooden spoon, mix in flour, which will gather into a soft ball with the fat. Cook, stirring constantly, over medium heat until mixture is fluffy and looks moist, about 2 minutes. Slowly whisk in 1/4 cup broth/pur e until mixture is smooth. Add remaining pur e. Bring gravy to a boil, then immediately remove from heat. Season gravy with salt and pepper to taste. Pour gravy into a gravy boat.

Makes a total of 2 3/4 cups, or 11 individual servings, each containing 43 calories and 1 gram of fat.