Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Pat the turkey dry with paper towels and place on a board. Stuff the cavity of the turkey with the apples, onion and thyme and then tie the legs together with kitchen twine tucking the wings underneath the breast, or running a piece of kitchen twine around the bird to tie in the wings.
3. Place a roasting rack in the bottom of a roasting pan or large baking dish (big enough to hold the whole turkey. Alternately, if you don’t have a rack, you can make a rack on the bottom of the roasting pan with whole carrots and celery stalks. Place the turkey on the roasting rack and then brush al lover with the melted butter. Season the turkey generously with salt and pepper.
4. Add the chicken broth and bay leaves into the bottom of the roasting pan and place into the oven. If your roasting pan has a lid, you can cover the pan or use aluminum foil to cover the turkey.
5. Bake the turkey for 2 1/2 – 3 hours, depending on the size of the turkey, basting with the juices every hour. Starting at 2 hours during a basting, check the temperature of the turkey. The turkey can be taken out of the oven between 155 and 160 degrees because the temperature will rise as it rests. If you find that the bottom of your roasting pan is getting dry you can add more chicken broth.
6. Remove the turkey from the pan and transfer to a cutting board. Cover the turkey with aluminum foil and let rest for at least 15 minutes before carving. See post for more details on how long a turkey will stay warm after taking it out of the oven.