How to Spice Up Your Stuffing Recipe
Thanksgiving isn’t the same without its staple side dish: stuffing. Although it is unclear whether or not the Pilgrims served stuffing at their signature feast, the recipe can be traced back to 1836 when people often stuffed the inside of the turkey with small-cut pieces of bread. In the 1970s, however, stuffing started to be served independent of the bird thanks to the establishment of Stovetop Stuffing, heavily mass-produced across America. Now that stuffing was sold in supermarkets--easy enough to be prepared on a stove, in a pot, or in a microwave--it became more accessible to families worldwide, not just during the November holiday but year-round. That being said, there is nothing like a homemade stuffing recipe to make a Thanksgiving feast all the more special. Below, chefs share their favorite stuffing recipes (with a twist!) to add a touch of excitement to the festive meal.
Gluten-Free French Toast Breakfast Stuffing
Maizy Boosin—winner of Chopped Junior Season 4, Episode 1—makes a stuffing recipe that caters both to her celiac disease and sweet tooth. “When I was seven, I was diagnosed with celiac disease, meaning I can’t eat gluten,” explains Boosin. “Since then, I’ve never stopped looking for ways to eat trendy, creative foods like the ones I see all over Instagram. This recipe puts a twist on stuffing, which is traditionally not gluten-free. By using gluten-free bread, it’s a stuffing dessert that even those with celiac disease can enjoy.”
Ingredients (yields 12 servings):
4 cups gluten-free cubed bread
3 eggs
1 cup milk
2 tbsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp cinnamon
1 tbsp butter
Directions:
Spread cubed bread evenly on two baking sheets. Bread should be cut into 16, 4 x 4 squares per slice. This recipe works with gluten-free or regular bread, so feel free to choose either option.
With the oven set to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, toast bread for 5 minutes per side, or until golden brown and crunchy.
While bread is toasting in the oven, combine milk, eggs, vanilla, and cinnamon and whisk until fully mixed. (Note: You can easily make this recipe dairy-free by using almond milk or soy milk instead of milk and replacing butter with coconut oil.)
After bread is toasted, butter a large casserole dish. In a large bowl, add the bread and milk/egg mixture and toss until all of the bread is coated. Pour this into the casserole dish and bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown.
Once the stuffing is baked, remove from oven and--if you desire--top with powdered sugar, whipped cream, berries, or any other topping.
Harvest Sage Stuffing
Elizabeth Linn, a finalist on Season 10 of MasterChef, possesses a stuffing recipe that holds a special place in her heart. “My mother was diagnosed with cancer, and during Thanksgiving week, she had gone in to the hospital for an aggressive chemotherapy treatment,” Linn explains. “Unfortunately, she had a very bad reaction and wasn’t coming home anytime soon. Through pain and tears, she walked me through cooking our family Thanksgiving dinner. Step by step, she taught me how to make the turkey, mashed potatoes, and stuffing. To this day, Thanksgiving meals are my favorite to cook, and it is my most-celebrated holiday. At the table, I always have an empty seat for my mom.”
Ingredients (yields 6 servings):
6 cups cubed French baguette or Focaccia bread (mix both bread types for added texture)
16 oz sage sausage*
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 cup diced celery
1 cup chopped yellow onion
1 cup chicken stock (use according to how you like your stuffing; drier means less stock)
1 ½ tsp dried rosemary
1 ½ tsp dried sage
½ tsp dried thyme
A pinch of fresh sage**
1 tsp seasoned salt to taste (Crazy Janes or Mrs. Dash provide salt-free flavoring
1 tsp poultry seasoning
½ cup of dried cranberries***
1 tsp orange zest
*Sage Sausage (mix all the ingredients below together in a large bowl, preferably with your hands; turkey can be used as an alternative to the sausage):
2 lbs ground pork (or ground turkey)
1 tbsp fresh sage, diced fine
1 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped (stems removed)
½ tsp red pepper flakes
4 cloves roasted garlic
1 tbsp kosher salt
½ tsp ground pepper
**Fresh sage can be fried for a garnish: Heat olive oil in a pan. Drop the sage leaves in for 10 seconds; do not let them turn brown, or they will taste bitter. With a slotted spoon, remove and sprinkle with sea salt. Let them rest until use.
***For a twist, you can replace cranberries with pears, pomegranate seeds, pecans, or sunflower nuts; you can also use a combination of any of the aforementioned.
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Farenheight.
On a large baking sheet, spread the bread cubes, and drizzle olive oil on them in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Bake for 5 to 7 minutes in the preheated oven or until evenly toasted.
Transfer toasted bread cubes to a large bowl.
In a large skillet, melt butter and cook the celery and onions over medium heat.
Add the seasoned salt to celery and onion so the flavors blend. Cook celery and onion until softened but not mushy.
Cook the sage sausage until cooked through, breaking up the lumps until evenly browned.
Add the sage sausage, rosemary, thyme and poultry seasoning to the celery and onions. Cook, stirring for 2 minutes to blend flavors. Add orange zest, salt and pepper to taste.
Pour sausage mixture over prepared bread cubes in bowl.
Mix in chopped cranberries or pomegranate, pecans and pears.
Drizzle with chicken stock and melted butter (if needed) and mix lightly. Allow stuffing to cool completely before loosely stuffing a turkey or serving separately.
Spicy Italian Pepperoni Stuffing
Twelve-year-old baker and chef Neko Masi—who appeared on Season 7 of MasterChef Junior—is keen on her family’s stuffing recipe with an Italian spin. “My family is Celtic. We come from Ireland and Scotland and can trace our family roots back hundreds of years,” says Masi. “This recipe comes from my Aunt Mickey, who brought her family's Italian flavors into our family when she became a part of it. She says that love is the most important ingredient in any recipe, and I agree! I love this spicy stuffing, and I hope your family will enjoy it, too!”
Ingredients (yields 12 servings):
1 lb. block deli pepperoni, cut into small ½" chunks
1 stick unsalted butter (Kerrygold is recommended)
1 large sweet onion, diced fine
3 stalks celery, chopped
2 bags cubed-style dry stuffing
1 carton chicken stock
3 large eggs
3 cloves garlic, minced
Salt and pepper to taste
1/3 cup parsley, chopped
1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
Directions:
In a large skillet, sauté the onion and celery in the butter until soft.
Add the pepperoni and cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes.
Pour into a large bowl. Do not drain! Mix in the dry bread cubes, parsley, garlic, salt, and pepper. (Note: Feel free to add extra pepper to make the stuffing even more spicy!)
Add 3 eggs and chicken stock until the mixture is wet and moist.
Spread mixture in a 9x13 casserole dish and cover with foil. Cook in a preheated oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 45 minutes.
Remove foil and sprinkle top with parmesan cheese. Cook for an additional 15 minutes until golden brown on top.
Sourdough Apple Stuffing
Deanna Colón, a competitor from Season 10 of MasterChef, is a prime example of how to tap into your creative side through cooking. “I use sourdough because of the standout flavor that particular bread adds to the dish,” Colón explains. “I find a lot of recipes include cranberries, so I wanted to do something different, hence substituting that fruit with plump golden raisins. I also wanted to add a bit of fall to it, so I incorporated the diced apples. Walnuts call for another lovely texture in the dish. Lastly, the red and white onion, celery, and carrots add such a pop of color and lend more to a traditional stuffing.”
Ingredients:
1 loaf sourdough bread
1 stick of butter
1 ½ tsp salt
1 ½ tsp pepper
1 ½ tsp onion powder
1 ½ tsp garlic powder
1 ½ tsp rosemary
1 ½ tsp thyme
1 ½ tsp tarragon
½ red onion, diced
½ white onion, diced
3 celery stalks, diced
3 carrots, diced
2 cored Golden Delicious apples, diced
⅓ cup crushed walnuts
⅓ cup chopped golden raisins
2 cups chicken broth
Directions:
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Take one loaf of sourdough bread and lay it out on a baking sheet. Place small pats of butter on each slice then sprinkle with salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, rosemary, thyme, and tarragon. Pop the baking sheets into your oven and let the bread toast up for 15 minutes.
While the bread toasts, chop up your other ingredients (red onion, white onion, celery stalks, carrots, apples, walnuts, and golden raisins) and place them all in a large mixing bowl.
Once the bread is out of oven and cools, stack a few pieces together and cut into small squares. Place the bread into the bowl with your pre-chopped ingredients.
Add 10 pats of butter, 2 cups of chicken broth, and a teaspoon of salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, rosemary, thyme, and tarragon. Mix together, then place the mixture into a casserole pan and cover with aluminum. Bake for 40 minutes, covered with aluminum foil, then remove foil and bake for another 15 minutes.
Lowcountry Cherry and Sage Stuffing
Jamie Hough—who competed on Season 10 of MasterChef a few months ago—attributes his favorite stuffing recipe to his mother and grandmothers. “I took the sage from my mom’s dressing, which was really dense, the fluffiness and the cherries from my grandma on my mom’s side, and the nuts from my dad’s mom,” Hough explains. However, the chef decided to put his own spin on the dish: “I’m addicted to duck fat so I decided to add it. In this instance, it really helps with the texture as well as the flavor. You can even put your own spin on the recipe by playing with the quantities of spices, berries, or nuts. It’s a good base for folks to build on so they can make their own traditional holiday stuffing.”
Ingredients (yields 8-12 servings):
1 cup dried cherries or craisins
½ cup crushed pecans or walnuts
½ cup duck fat
½ stick butter
3 tsp dried sage
2 tbsp fresh sage
2 cups chicken broth
Salt and pepper to taste
6 cups King’s Hawaiian Bread cubes, toasted
Directions:
Coat cast iron pan with butter.
In a large bowl, mix toasted bread pieces (roughly 1/2” to 1” in size), herbs, spices, melted duck fat, cherries, nuts, and chicken broth. Place in smoker or oven for 30 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit or until the top is brown.
Apple, Cranberry, Chestnut, and Sage Stuffing
Former MasterChef Season 10 contestant Kenny Palazzolo attributes his family’s special stuffing recipe to his mom, who was tired of their regular, plain version when she introduced a new take on it eight years ago. “These are the recipes we cherish the most in our family, the ones we create ourselves and especially the ones my mother creates,” Palazzolo explains. “She was the one that taught me and my sisters how to cook when we were young. We‘re certainly a family with a great love of food.”
Ingredients (yields 15-18 servings):
10 cups, cubed, of dried bread mixed with 5 tsp, finely chopped fresh sage, 1 tsp. salt, 1 tsp. pepper (or replace with 1 16 oz. bag of Pepperidge farm herb stuffing mix)
2 sticks butter (8 oz)
5-6 stalks celery, finely chopped
1 large Vidalia onion, finely chopped
4 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and finely chopped
1 ½ cups chestnuts, cooled and peeled
1 ½ cups dried cranberries
3 cups chicken broth
Directions:
In a large sauté pan, melt butter. Then add celery, onion, and apples.
Cook until soft (10-15 minutes).
Stir in cranberries and chestnuts.
Add the broth, then the bread.
Put in roasting pan and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit, until hot (about 45 minutes). Make sure to not let it dry out.