Double Shot: Addictive Turkey Gravy

I love double shots. A double shot recipe is one where you can do half the cooking for two different meals, getting a lot more bang for your buck. The great thing about this gravy is that A) You can make it with any poultry, and B) It makes an utterly delicious base for a chicken or turkey stew.

I think gravy scares the crap out of people, mostly because it seems like a difficult process. It's really not; all you have to do is ensure that your flour or cornstarch isn't in lumps. To do this, you can use a wire whisk, or you can do what I do - use a food processor or blender. As we all know, I'll find any way possible to pimp a food processor, and I've found making sauces in one makes for thick, creamy concoctions that can't be beat.

This gravy is time intensive, but definitely worth the effort. As stated before, you can certainly make it with another poultry besides turkey; it would be just as delicious with chicken or cornish game hen, for instance.

The Basics:
2 turkey wings and 2 drumsticks OR 4 drumsticks, whatever is cheaper
6 tbsp olive oil (Or enough to thoroughly coat the bottom of your stock pot)
2 tbsp butter
2 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
2 ribs celery, diced
1 onion, quartered
2 cloves garlic, smashed
3-4 sprigs fresh sage OR 1 tsp dried sage
3-4 sprigs fresh thyme OR 2 tsp dried thyme (I would recommend springing for the fresh)
3-4 fresh parsley stalks
1 carton Progresso Chicken Broth
Poultry Seasoning
Salt, fresh black pepper

Start by taking your turkey pieces and coating them with the melted butter. You don't have to drown them, just enough to get the juices going once they're roasting. Coat liberally with the poultry seasoning, salt, and black pepper.

Coat stock pot with olive oil and a little butter, if you wish. Place your turkey inside and arrange the rest of the ingredients except the chicken broth inside. Roast for 10 minutes or so, turning your turkey pieces as they brown. If you don't have enough room in your pot for all four pieces, that's okay. Put two pieces in a glass dish and roast them separately, after coating the same as the other pieces. This is mostly to ensure you get enough drippings for your gravy.

After ten minutes, put half a cup of the chicken broth in the pot and put in the oven, covered, to roast at 350 degrees. Let it roast for about an hour, stirring it all up a few times to get the flavors to mix around.

Remove your turkey pieces once they're brown and juices run clear. Strip the meat from the bones and set the meat aside in a bowl. Add another cup of chicken broth and bring to a boil, stirring. Let it boil for about ten minutes and then take out a cup of your liquid and put it in your food processor. Take about a half-cup of your turkey meat and put it in the blender; add the onion and garlic from the stock pot as well. Add 2 tbsp of flour to start and process until smooth. If it's not as thick as you'd like, add a little more flour and repeat until desired consistency. Strain the liquid left in the stock pot to remove the solids left over and return your blended mixture to the pot, whisking it in with the rest. Repeat these steps until desired consistency, but keep in mind it will thicken up FAST on you, so don't go crazy with the flour. Let it simmer for about ten more minutes, stirring on low heat; use your chicken broth and flour alternately to thin or thicken your gravy. Make sure you stir it so the flour doesn't brown.

To make this into a soup or stew, warm it up in your soup pot, thin it to your desired consistency with chicken broth, and add whatever you'd like in the soup. Cook the meat before adding your leftover gravy in some chicken broth and poultry seasoning, letting it braise in the liquid before adding the thicker base. You can add anything you like; I like celery, carrots and peas to make a stew that tastes a lot like pot pie filling.