In my five years of writing this blog, I’ve posted most of my Thanksgiving recipe favorites here on e is for eat.
Among some of my go-to’s…
Brie Mashed Potatoes
Homemade Green Bean Casserole
Candied Sweet Potatoes
Grand Marnier Cranberry Sauce
Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Kale & Butternut squash salad
But for some reason I’ve never shared a stuffing recipe. Which is crazy because it’s one of my favorite Thanksgiving sides. It’s one of those things where I will sneak bites of throughout the day and before you know it I’ve eaten a whole pan of stuffing.
My step-mom Jennea has an awesome recipe that was passed down from her grandmother. I’m sharing that today, with a few tweaks.
Her grandmother used to bake her own fresh bread, dry it out and then make the stuffing. Jennea generally uses store-bought Pepperidge Farm bread cubes. I landed somewhere in the middle, buying a sourdough loaf, cutting it into cubes and drying it out for a couple days on a sheet pan. (If you are pinched for time you can lightly toast them in the oven, just take care not to burn them!)
As for the aromatics, it’s a mixture of onions, celery and apples (I used granny smith and fuji because that’s what I had, but original recipe calls for red delicious.) Craisins might be a good add-in here, and I’ve also done golden raisins and/or sausage in the past. But for the sake of simplicity and tradition, I’m keeping close to the original recipe with this post. For herbs/spices I used a combination of rosemary, sage and parsley; fresh and dry based on what I had on hand (I did fresh rosemary & parsley and dried sage and poultry seasoning.) Feel free to use all fresh or all dry, or a combo like I did! (Except don’t use dried parsley).
Confession: my original plan was to make individual “stuffing muffins.” Turns out, when I baked them, they didn’t really come out like a muffin at all, just individual pre-portioned servings. You can try it yourself if you like to see if you have better luck… perhaps an egg or two might help to bind? (or just bake in a 9×13 casserole dish).
I don’t like to stuff my turkey for even cooking reasons, but if you do, stuff away! You can put the excess stuffing in a casserole to be cooked during the turkey’s final hour.
Rosemary & Sage Sourdough Stuffing
by
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Keywords: roast saute side bread apple rosemary sage Thanksgiving American fall
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Ingredients (8-10 servings)
- 1 or 1.5 pound loaf sourdough bread, cut into 1/2″ cubes, about 8 cups (I like to leave crust on, but you can remove if desired)
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1-2 medium yellow onions, diced (about 2 cups)
- 4 stalks celery, haved lengthwise and then sliced
- 1 Granny Smith Apple, diced
- 1 Fuji Apple, diced
- 2 teaspoons fresh rosemary (OR 1 teaspoon dried Sage, crushed)
- 6 sage leaves, minced (OR 1 teaspoon rubbed Sage)
- 1-2 teaspoons poultry seasoning, to taste
- 1/4 cup fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped (optional, not in original recipe)
- Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste
- 1.5 to 2 cups warmed chicken broth
Instructions
- 1-2 days before you plan to serve the stuffing, cube bread and spread on a large sheet pan and allow to dry on the counter. (Alternately, you can toast in a 350 degree oven for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally). Transfer to large bowl.
- Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. In a 9×13 casserole dish, spray with cooking spray or coat with butter.
- Melt butter in a large sauté pan. Sauté onions & celery for about 5 minutes. Add apples and sauté for about 5-8 minutes more. Stir in rosemary, sage, poultry seasoning and parsley (if using) and cook another minute. Add vegetable mixture to bowl of bread cubes and stir.
- Ladle warm broth into bowl of bread crumbs until moistened, but not wet. (You may have extra broth). Season with sea salt and fresh cracked paper and pour into prepared pan (or stuff turkey).
- Do ahead step: can be made one day ahead, covered and refrigerated in the casserole dish until ready to cook.
- About an hour or so before ready to serve, cover with foil and cook at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Uncover and cook 15-30 minutes more, or until top is golden and crisp in spots (can also drizzle with turkey drippings if desired!) Allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving.
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