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1
Bring the turkey to room temperature 1 hour before roasting.
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2
Place a rack in the lowest position of the oven and remove the other racks; preheat to 350.
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3
Remove the neck and giblets from the turkey; discard the liver and reserve the neck and the rest of the giblets.
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4
Dry the turkey inside and out with paper towels and season the cavity with salt and pepper.
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5
Halve 1 head garlic crosswise and stuff into the cavity along with 3 onion wedges, the apples and 1/2 bunch sage.
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6
Place the remaining 3 onion wedges, the fennel and carrot in the center of a large roasting pan with 1 cup water.
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7
Set a rack above the vegetables and place the turkey breast-side up on the rack.
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8
Season all over with salt and pepper.
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9
Chop 3 tablespoons sage, then melt 3 sticks butter with the sage and salt and pepper to taste in a saucepan over medium heat.
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10
Fill a meat syringe with the sage butter and inject it into the breasts, legs and thighs; continue until you have used about half of the sage butter.
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11
Brush the bird with the rest of the butter and tie the legs together with twine.
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12
Roast the turkey, uncovered, about 1 hour 30 minutes.
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13
Rotate the pan and continue roasting until a thermometer inserted into the thigh registers 165, 1 hour 30 minutes to 1 hour 45 minutes.
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14
Turn off the oven but leave the turkey inside until the thermometer registers 170, 15 to 20 more minutes.
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15
While the turkey roasts, make the gravy: Melt the remaining 1 stick butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
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16
Add the reserved neck and giblets, season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until brown, about 10 minutes.
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17
Peel and smash the remaining head of garlic, add it to the pan and cook until golden, about 2 minutes.
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18
Add the broth and bay leaves, cover and simmer over medium-low heat, about 2 hours.
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19
Discard the bay leaves, neck and giblets.
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20
Transfer the turkey to a cutting board and let rest 20 to 30 minutes before carving.
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21
Transfer the vegetables to a blender.
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22
Pour the drippings into a liquid measuring cup and skim off the fat.
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23
Add 1 cup drippings and the flour to the blender and puree until smooth.
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24
Whisk the remaining drippings and pureed vegetables into the broth mixture.
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25
Bring to a boil, then simmer until the gravy is smooth, about 10 minutes.
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26
Stir in the balsamic vinegar; season with salt and pepper.
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27
Transfer the turkey to a platter and garnish with any remaining sage.
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28
Carve the turkey and serve with the gravy.
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29
Photograph by Steve Giralt
