Make-ahead Turkey Gravy

Ingredients --
turkey neck + gizzards
2 tbs oil (we used olive)
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
4 cups low sodium chicken broth
2 cups water
1 tsp dried thyme or 4 springs of fresh
6 tbs unsalted butter
6 tbs flour
salt & pepper

Directions --
The Day Before:
Heat oil in your pan. Add turkey neck and gizzards. Cook for 5 minutes, until lightly browned.
Add the onion, carrot and celery. Cook for about 5 minutes on medium heat. Lower your heat and cover. Cook for 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes or so.
Add your chicken broth, stock, water and herbs, taking care to scrape up all of those yummy brown bits. Simmer for about 30 minutes. Pour through a fine mesh strainer into a large bowl.
In your pan, melt butter. Add in your flour and whisk continually until the mixture turns a golden hue, about 5 minutes. Add in your liquid a little bit at a time, stirring constantly until each pour is incorporated.
Simmer gravy for about 5 minutes until it reaches the desired thickness. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. Store in fridge for up to 3 days.
NOTE: When it’s time to reheat, add in your turkey drippings for a richer flavor.
I like making the gravy fixings the day before. However, I follow a slightly different process. I follow the recipe up to step 3. Once the broth is strained, I store it in the refrigerator until I’m ready to make the gravy. I don’t mind making the gravy while the turkey is resting. I prefer the taste of freshly made gravy. However, by using this method, I don’t have to go through all the trouble of preparing the broth for gravy.
I remove the broth from the refrigerator about 1/2 hour before I’m ready to use it and remove any layer of fat that may have accumulated on the top, which saves lots of calories. This way the broth returns to a liquid state. Then I continue on with step 4 and make the gravy while the turkey is resting as this only takes about 10 minutes.