Sage Stuffing (or Dressing-whatever you want to call it!)

Here it is, 2 days before Thanksgiving. Time really flies by fast this time of year doesn't it? If you are hosting the meal on the big day I hope that you already have some of the preparations out of the way so that you can enjoy your time with family and friends. Our family had our big dinner this past Sunday. Now that our kids are all married, it seemed like a good idea to celebrate on a different day than Thanksgiving. That frees up the kids to go to the other side of the family on the big day. I mean, it's not really fun if you have to make it to 3 dinners in one day. So this worked well for us.
I thought I'd share my stuffing recipe with you today. Dressing or stuffing, I've called it both names. For years I've tried to make my stuffing like my mother-in-law used to. But she didn't follow a recipe, she had a method that she followed every year that produced a moist and spicy bread dressing that we loved. I'm getting closer. I think I would have nailed it this year, but I needed more sage. But this was still a yummy dressing full of fresh herbs that made tasty leftovers too. My photo was taken quickly, before we sat down to devour our food. Here is my method.

Sage Stuffing
From Lynda's Recipe Box
(Hint) You may use all bread if desired, instead of adding cornbread. To save time on the big day, prepare the corn bread 2 days ahead of your dinner. Also cube the bread at this time. Use a hearty white bread. It will then be dried out enough to stir up the day before your dinner. Just mix up the stuffing and place in a greased baking dish; cover and refrigerate. Take out of fridge about 30 minutes before placing in the oven, Bake and serve.

Ingredients:
about 8 cups of white bread cubes- trim crusts from bread and cut into small cubes
about 4 cups of cornbread, cubed or crumbled- from this recipe, or your own recipe
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
3 tablespoons fresh sage, finely chopped- or about 1 tablespoons dried sage
1 teaspoon fresh thyme or rosemary, finely chopped
1 teaspoon salt
about 1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 stick (1/2 cup), unsalted butter, melted
1 large sweet onion, finely diced
2 stalks celery, finely diced
2 large eggs, beaten
1 cup of unsalted chicken stock or broth, or more
1/3 cup half and half or heavy cream

Preparation:
If you need to dry the bread and cornbread more, place the cubes on 2 baking sheets and place in a 300 degree oven for 15-20 minutes until dry. Cool in pans, then transfer to a large bowl. When ready to stir up the dressing, stir in the herbs and the salt and pepper.

Melt butter in a heavy skillet over medium low heat. Add the onions and celery and cook until tender, about 5minutes. Pour into the bowl with the bead. Mix the eggs and half and half together. Pour over the bread. Add the chicken broth and toss all the ingredients together. if you need more broth stir it in. I used about 1 1/3 cup.

Transfer stuffing to a greased 2 1/2 quart to 3 quart baking dish. Cover with foil. (At this point you can refrigerate the stuffing for 1 day.) If ready to bake, place it covered, in the middle of the oven at 350 degrees for 25minnutes. Uncover and bake another 25 - 30minutes until golden. Remove from oven and enjoy.
Also check out my recipe for Sausage and Cornbread Dressing.

My daughter Hailey has started a food blog also. She'd be so happy if you stopped by to "hi" at Tasteful Cuisine.