Roast Turkey With Cream Gravy

• 1 (12-to 14-pound) turkey, neck and giblets (excluding liver) reserved for turkey stock
• 2 1/2 cups water, divided
• About 4 cups hot
• Melted unsalted butter if necessary
• 5 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup heavy cream
• Equipment: a 17- by 14-inch flameproof roasting pan with a flat rack; kitchen string; a 2-quart measuring cup or a fat separator

1. Rinse turkey inside and out and pat dry. Put turkey on rack in roasting pan and season inside and out with 1 tablespoon salt and 2 teaspoons pepper. Fold neck skin under body, then tuck wing tips under breast and tie drumsticks together with string. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour.
2. Preheat oven to 450u0b0F with rack in lower third.
3. Add 1 cup water to pan and roast, without basting, rotating pan halfway through, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into fleshy part of each thigh (test both; do not touch bone) registers 165 to 170u0b0F, 1 3/4 to 2 hours total.
4. Carefully tilt turkey so juices from inside large cavity run into pan. Transfer turkey to a platter (reserve juices in roasting pan) and let rest, uncovered, 30 minutes (temperature of thigh meat will rise to 170 to 175u0b0F). Discard string.
5. Strain pan juices through a fine-mesh sieve into 2-quart measure and skim off fat (or use a fat separator), reserving fat. Straddle roasting pan across 2 burners, then add remaining 1 1/2 cups water and deglaze pan by boiling over high heat, stirring and scraping up brown bits, 1 minute. Strain through sieve into measuring cup containing pan juices. Add enough turkey giblet stock to pan juices to bring total to 5 cups.
6. Put 5 tablespoons reserved fat (if there is less, add melted butter) in a 4-quart heavy saucepan and whisk in flour. Cook roux over medium heat, whisking, 3 minutes. Add stock mixture in a fast stream, whisking constantly, then add cream, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 1/2 teaspoons pepper. Bring to a boil, whisking, then stir in any turkey juices from platter and simmer 5 minutes.
7. Serve turkey with gravy.

turkey, water, necessary, flour, heavy cream, kitchen string

Taken from www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/roast-turkey-with-cream-gravy-356058 (may not work)