There are 2 things that make homemade stuffing really magical... great quality bread and pretty much a stupid amount of butter. It’s a holiday, live it up!
Here is how I make my craveable stuffing.
2 Loaves whole loaf bread, this year I used I ciabatta and 1 lemon rosemary from Bleu Handcrafted Foods but I also love Anything by La Brea Bakery. Cut into 1 inch cubes and dry in a 250 degree oven until very dry or leave out for a few days. The drier the bread the more it can absorb all the yummyness.
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 leeks, cleaned and sliced thin
S&P to taste
1# mild Italian sausage, casing removed
1 pkg Crimini mushrooms, sliced thin
1 apple diced, pink lady or Braeburn are my favorites
1/2# butter
in a large Sauté pan
heat olive oil
add leeks, season with S&P
saute until soft but not brown
add sausage, brown until cooked through
add mushrooms, apples and butter
toss together until mushrooms are soft and butter is melted
In a large bowl combine the
dried bread cubes
1/2 cup dried cranberries
2 Tablespoons fresh sage, chopped
2 Tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped
2 Tablespoons fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
1 Tablespoons fresh rosemary, chopped
and the contents of your sauté pan
Use your hands to mix the bread, herbs, cranberries and sautéed items until just combined.
Add 1 box of Chicken broth or stock
stir every 5 minutes for 20 minutes to allow bread to soak up broth and butter.
Place stuffing mixture in a oven safe dish
add 1/2 box more stock. Cover with foil and allow to rest until the bread absorbs most of the liquid or overnight in the fridge.
Bake in a 350 degree oven for 1 hour covered
remove foil and allow the top to crisp up. Approximately 30 minutes
The cool thing about stuffing is you can really make it your own. Switch up yellow onions for the leeks, use a spicy or a sweet sausage. Hate mushrooms? Leave them out! Get creative and have fun with it!
If you have questions just shoot me a message from the Contact page.
Love it. Cook it. Eat It.
Chef Alisa