Homemade Stuffing

Shared by Kay at our Nov. RS Meeting
Adapted from recipes by Ina Garten and Paula Deen

Sausage, Apple, & Herbs Stuffing
Ingredients
16 cups 1-inch bread cubes, I prefer brioche, but you can use white or whole wheat (2 baguettes)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter (1/2 stick)
1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
1 cup of shallot, 1 cup of yellow onion (chopped)
2 cups medium-diced celery (3 large stalks)
2 Granny Smith apples, unpeeled, cored and large diced, then mix with1 tsp of apple cider (to prevent discoloring)
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary leaves
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup sliced blanched almonds, toasted, optional
1 pound of Italian sausage (mild), casings removed
1 cup of dried cranberry
Drizzles of maple syrup (real maple syrup)/honey

Directions
Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
Put the bread cubes on a 13 by 18 by 1-inch baking sheet and bake them in the oven for 7 minutes.
In a large saute pan, melt the butter and add the onion, shallot, celery, apples, parsley, rosemary, salt, and pepper. Saute for 10 minutes, until the mixture is soft, then remove from the pan.
Use the same sauté pan, heat the olive oil, then stir fry the sausages.
Combine the bread cubes, cooked vegetables, sausage, and cranberries in a large bowl and add the chicken stock, and almonds, if desired.
Put the stuffing into a large ceramic dish, drizzle the maple syrup/honey on the top, then put in the oven, bake in 350 degree for 30 minutes.

Apple Cranberry Casserole Stuffing
Same ingredients as recipe above but change the quantities of items listed below:
1.      Increase chicken broth to 2 cups
2.      Reduce bread cubes to 8-10 cups
3.      Delete shallots, rosemary, and sausage
4.      Change almonds to walnuts, chopped

Add the following ingredients:
1.      1 tsp cinnamon
2.      3 large eggs, beaten, set aside
3.      (10.75-ounce) can cream of celery soup

Directions:
Soak the cranberries with chicken broth.
Dry the bread as the first recipe, then melt the butter and cook the apples and vegetables until softened.
In a large bowl, mix the cooked vegetables, chicken broth, cream of celery soup, cinnamon, cranberries and the walnuts. Move everything to a lightly buttered casserole pan.
Cook at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes until center is set.