I've never prepared a turkey like this, so I cannot say if it will taste good until Thursday, but from what I read it seemed worthy of the effort.

I followed this recipe directly from this November's House Beautiful pg.88. It calls for a butterflied turkey. Now I've never butterflied a turkey and I had some trepidation about doing this, but I managed although I recommend having your butcher do it for you.

12 lb whole turkey
1/4 cup shallots, minced
1/3 cup fred flat-leat parsley, minced
3 tbsp fresh oregano, minced
3 tbsp fresh rosemary, minced
3 tbsp Dijon mustard
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice

3 tbsp melted butter To butterfly the turkey: Position the bird, breast side down on a cutting board. Using kitchen shears or a large knife, cut along one side of the backbone until the bird is split open. Pull open the halves of the bird and cut down the other side of the backbone to free it. Cut between the rib plates and remove any small pieces of bone. Turn the bird breast-side up, opening as flat as possible. Press it firmly with your hands to break the breastbone and flatten the bird. (I was unable to break the breastbone). Season the turkey with salt and pepper.

In a bowl, mix together the garlic, shallots, parsley, oregano, rosemary, lemon juice and olive oil. Use your fingers to push some of the herb mixture under the skin of the breat and legs. Rub the remaining herb mixture over the surface of the turkey. Place on a roasting pan and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 6 to 24 hours. Remove turkey from the refrigerator one hour before roasting. Preheat oven to 375F. (This recipe calls for you to place a rack in the roasting pan under the turkey.) Brush the turkey with the melted butter (breast side up). Roast until the skin is deep brown and an instant thermometer (I don't have one of those) inserted into the thickest part of the thigh away from the bone registers 175 degrees. (about 3 hours)
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