Another Thanksgiving standard at my table is the stuffing and cranberry sauce. Both are made from scratch. No need to buy the boxed variety of stuffing or the tinned cranberry sauce…here are the easy, home made versions.
A little about the stuffing, if you’re the type that wants it in the turkey, go ahead but please allow the stuffing to cool before actually placing it in the turkey and do not overstuff the turkey. Both cooking errors can lead to a false reading in the stuffing which leads to bacteria which leads to a post-Thanksgiving tummy-ache!
Play it safe, bake your stuffing in a casserole dish…it’ll taste just as good and you could always place the turkey on a bed of stuffing if you’re looking for a nice presentation. Also, this stuffing can be made ahead of time, refrigerated and then placed in the oven and timed to be ready for dinner.
Finally, don’t worry about the giblets & other organ meat in the stuffing. They are finely chopped and no one will know they were even in the stuffing. I hate organ meat but this stuffing is actually complemented by it and others won’t even know it’s in there…SHHHHH!
Turkey Stuffing
1 baguette or equivalent dry bread, cubed into Croutons(or cube some other bread then dry out in the oven for 30 minutes at 200f).
1 packet of turkey giblets, finely chopped
3 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1 large onion, diced
1 stalk of celery, diced
1 bay leaf
3 mild to medium Italian sausages, casings removed and broken up to the consistency of mince
3 Tbsp. of chopped fresh sage
5 Tbsp. of chopped fresh parsley
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 cups of turkey, chicken or vegetable
1/2 cup of cream
salt and pepper to taste
- Place your Croutons in your casserole/baking vessel and toss with the parsley, sage some salt and lots of black pepper and reserve.
- Using a skillet, melt your butter and saute your onions, celery, bay leaf until softened (10 minutes) under medium-low heat.
- Add your giblets & sausage and saute until browned for another 10 minutes under medium heat. Pour in and stir the cream and reserve to cool to warm.
- Add your stock to the Croutons and toss to coat and wet the entire mixture. Allow to cool for a few minutes then add the egg and mix well.
- Add your sausage/giblets saute to the casserole and fold until the entire mixture has blended.
- Bake in a pre-heated 350F oven for 30-40 minutes or until the top has turned a golden brown.
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