Roasted Turkey Wings with Creamy Marsala Gravy

Equipment needed: A large bowl, and a large roasting pan. Use one of those disposable aluminum foil pans if you don’t have an actual roasting pan. If you use an aluminum roasting pan, make sure you place the wings on the middle rack instead of the lower-middle rack.

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Place wings in a very large bowl, and pour in about 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Just enough to coat each wing thinly. Add the kosher salt, black pepper, white pepper (if using), smoked paprika, dried thyme, herbs de provence, onion powder, granulated garlic, crushed red pepper flakes, cayenne pepper, balsamic vinegar, and worcestershire sauce. Toss to coat, making sure each wing is seasoned evenly.
3. Meanwhile, lay all the aromatics in the bottom of a large roasting pan. Drizzle with about 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and season with a little kosher salt and black pepper. Toss everything together, and arrange in an even layer. 
4. Place the seasoned wings on top of the bed of aromatics, making sure the wings are in an even layer. It’s ok if a few overlap one another. Cover the roasting pan tightly with foil and place in the preheated oven on the lower-middle oven rack. Roast for 90 minutes at 325 degrees F.
5. After 90 minutes, remove the wings from the oven and remove the foil. Increase the oven temperature to 375 degrees. Place the wings, uncovered, back into the oven. Roast for 60 minutes. 
6. Meanwhile, make the gravy. In a large pot, heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat until the butter is sizzling. Add the flour and whisk vigorously until you’ve formed a smooth silky paste. If your roux is too thick, add up to 4 more tablespoons of olive oil. Lower the heat to low (depending on how hot your stove is), and continue whisking until the roux has turned peanut butter brown. This will take anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes. No matter what, don’t stop whisking. You don’t have to be so vigorous at this point that you’re out of breath, but keep the roux moving so it doesn’t scorch — otherwise you’ll have to start all over again. Adjust your heat if you need to, as the roux should not be burning or smoking. Keep whisking until you’ve reached that proper color, then vigorously whisk in the chicken stock until completely smooth. When it’s all smooth, you can reduce the whisking speed. Increase the heat to medium, and continue whisking slowly. Whisk in the marsala wine, and worcestershire sauce. Add the cayenne pepper, and season to taste with salt, pepper, onion powder, and granulated garlic. Whisk in the half and half, and add in the bay leaves. Keep whisking, making sure to get in all the little crevices at the bottom of the pot because tiny flour pockets love to accumulate there and we don’t want them to burn. Whisk often until the gravy has thickened, this can take up to 10 minutes, and I promise this is the most laborious part of the recipe. Make sure you taste the gravy as you go, adjusting seasoning as needed. Once the gravy has thickened and is flavored nicely, remove the pot from the heat, cover with a lid, and set aside until the wings are done with their second roast.
7. Remove the wings after their second roast. Tilt the roasting pan to see if any pools of fat have accumulated. If so, use a turkey baster or large spoon to remove most of the fat. You won’t get all of it, and that’s fine. Just try to get most of it if you can.
8. Pour the gravy over the wings. You may not need all of it, but it’s better to have too much than too little. Freeze any leftover. Toss the wings and aromatics in the gravy, making sure they’ve all been doused. Arrange the wings back into a layer that allows some surfaces of the wings to be exposed. Those exposed spots will caramelize and brown up nicely. Place the wings back in the 375 degree oven, uncovered, for one hour.
9. Remove from oven, and serve, making sure you spoon that delicious gravy (along with some of the aromatics) all over your wings. Enjoy!