I’ll admit it, this week I’m not actually cooking from my books. But don’t worry – as soon as Shadow Of Sin hits the virtual shelves, I’ll have a bunch of Erin Flannery’s recipes to share.
In the meantime, seeing as next week is one of the most food centric of the year, I thought I’d share my all time favorite recipe for Thanksgiving stuffing.
To be honest, stuffing is one of my least favorite of the traditional Thanksgiving dishes. I mean, why waste the calories on a bunch of soggy seasoned bread?
Then I discovered this recipe for Cornbread Sausage and Dried Fruit stuffing, and my stance on stuffing completely changed. Okay, it’s still not the star of my Turkey Day – we all know it’s all about the gravy. Still, once I started making this version of stuffing I started saving room on my plate for a scoop. The savory sausage and the tart-sweet dried fruit give the cornbread a ton of flavor, and the cornbread gets soft but not mushy.
Enjoy!
Ingredients
1 pound bulk pork sausage
2 cups chopped onions
2 cups chopped celery
7 to 8 cups crumbled cornbread
1 cup dried apricots, chopped
1 cup dried cranberries
2 large eggs, beaten to blend
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage leaves or 1/2 teaspoon dried rubbed sage
1/2 cup (1/4 lb.) butter or margarine, melted
About 3/4 cup chicken broth
Salt and pepper
Preparation
1. Crumble the sausage into a 10- to 12-inch frying pan over medium-high heat. Stir often until sausage is lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer sausage to a large bowl.
2. Discard all but 2 tablespoons fat in pan. Add onions to pan and stir often until limp, about 5 minutes. Add onions to sausage.
3. Add celery, cornbread, apricots, cranberries, eggs, sage, and butter and stir to mix well, adding just enough broth to lightly moisten dressing.
4. Spoon dressing into a shallow 2 1/2- to 3-quart casserole and cover.
5. Bake in a 325° oven until hot, about 25 minutes (if chilled, 50 to 60 minutes). Then uncover and bake until top is lightly browned, 15 to 25 minutes more. Add salt and pepper to taste.
