Grilled Tuscan Style Turkey

Ingredients

12-14 lb whole turkey
4-6 tbsp unsalted butter
4 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1 tbsp chopped fresh thyme
2 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
2 tsp lemon zest
1 tbsp olive oil

Directions

Butterfly (or spatchcock) the turkey by cutting out the backbone and cracking the breastbone. Reserve the backbone and any trimmings you have for making turkey stock.

Loosen the skin over the breast and flatten a tablespoon or two of butter in between the skin and breast meat. Mix together the herbs, lemon zest, and olive oil in a bowl. Rub the turkey all over with the herb mixture and let it rest for 1 hour at room temperature.

Preheat the grill. Once the grill is hot, adjust the grill so that it maintains a temperature of around 425F. If you can, make a two level fire so that the outer parts of the grill are hotter than the middle.

Transfer the turkey to the grill so that the turkey is skin side up and the breast of the turkey is over the coolest part of the grill. Close the cover and grill the turkey until the breast reaches 150F and the thighs reach 165F. This will take about 1 hour for a 12 lb turkey. At around 20 minutes into the cooking time, melt the remaining butter and use that to baste the turkey 3 or 4 times while the turkey grills.

When the turkey is done, transfer it to a cutting board and let it rest for 15-20 minutes before carving.