Over medium heat, heat maple syrup with butter until the butter melts and the mixture bubbles.  Remove from the heat and set aside.  About 30 minutes before your turkey is done brush over the maple syrup glaze.

For the gravy:

In a small bowl, combine 1 Tbsp room temperature butter with 1 1/2 Tbsp flour and mix together until a smooth paste forms.  Set aside.  Use the defatted drippings and place the roasting pan on top of the stove over medium-high heat.  Pour in 1 cup of The Doctor’s Riesling into the pan and cook, until reduced by half, about 6 minutes.  Add 2 cups of Rich Turkey Stock and cook until reduced again by half, about 7 minutes.  Strain the liquid through a cheesecloth-lined sieve, and pour into a small saucepan.   Whisk in the reserved butter-flour mixture and cook, whisking constantly, until the butter has melted.  Reduce the heat to medium-low and let gravy simmer until slightly thickened, 8 minutes.  Serve the gravy on the side with the carved turkey.

This recipe is brought to you by:  The Doctor’s Riesling  (01) New Zealand

LEMON – INFUSED RICE PUDDING WITH SPICED PEARS
Serves 6

Pudding
2 cups table cream
2 cups homogenized milk
5 Tbsp sugar
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
pinch sea salt
1/3 cup short grain rice
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 lemon, zest and juice only
Preheat oven to 350 F.  Heat cream, milk, sugar, vanilla bean, cardamom, salt and zest in a saucepan until scalding.  Stir in rice, bring to a boil, simmer for 10 minutes and transfer to a greased baking dish.  Place into oven and bake, stirring occasionally, 1 hour or until pudding is thick and browned on top.  Remove from oven, remove vanilla bean and stir in butter and lemon juice.

Spiced Pears
6 firm pears, peeled, halved and cored
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/4 tsp cardamom seeds, coarsely ground
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 cup brown sugar
Preheat oven to 300 F.  Place pear halves in a roasting pan cut side up.  Mix together melted butter and spices and brush over pears then sprinkle sugar evenly over.  Bake 1 hour or until tender and browned.  Remove and serve with pudding.

from Taste magazine Fall 2010