Brining the turkey: Bring a couple of cups of water to a boil, add the molasses and salt, and stir until dissolved. Add enough ice to cool it all down, and transfer to a container large enough to hold the turkey.* Add cool water (shooting for a low estimate of how much will be needed to fill in around the turkey) and stir.

Rinse the turkey well and put it in the brine, neck end or breasts facing down. Add enough water to cover the turkey. Set aside for 12–18 hours in a place where it will stay cold.

Spice rub and aromatics. Use a spice mill or mortar and pestle to grind all of the spices together. Stir in the ghee or oil to make a thick paste, and set aside. Place a wire rack into your roasting pan, and place the herbs on the rack.

Prepping the turkey: Remove the turkey from the brine. Rinse it enough so that you're sure that all of the salt is rinsed off the outside of the turkey, and then rinse it for a few minutes more. Use paper towels or clean dish towels to dry as well as possible. Rub the spice mixture over both the skin and the underside of the turkey. Place the turkey on top of the herbs in the roasting pan. Place in the refrigerator, uncovered, for up to one day.

Roasting: Remove the turkey from the refrigerator, lift the turkey and the rack out of the roasting pan, set aside on a rimmed baking sheet, and let sit at room temperature for an hour. In the meantime, heat the oven to 450°. Fill the pan with something wonderful to bake with the turkey—stuffing or roasting vegetables. Set the rack back into the pan in such a way that it is slightly above the yummies. Bake for about two hours, rotating the pan halfway through, and tenting with foil once it's a nice golden brown. The turkey is done when a quick-read thermometer placed in the thickest part of the bird registers 165° for the brea and 175° for the thigh.

Let rest at least ten minutes before carving and serving.

The brining container: I have a multi-gallon thermos that I picked up at a garage sale and use only for this; it's great because in the winter I can set the whole thing on the back porch, and in the summer I can set the whole thing into my oversized freezer.

About that backbone: Have your butcher remove the backbone, and then make sure you take it with you. Roast it ahead of time and use it to make stock, and then gravy.