If I could only have one of the typical Thanksgiving dishes, I’m pretty sure I would choose stuffing. A pile of stuffing doused in mushroom gravy is just about as good as it gets, in my opinion. Each family seems to have their own special stuffing recipe–some with nuts, some with cornbread, some with dried fruit, etc. I like the stuffing my mom makes, which I think is a fairly traditional version. Very simple ingredients–bread, onions, celery, garlic and herbs–make this stuffing easy to make and the flavors are spot-on. As a rule, as you’re chopping the parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme, it is appropriate to hum or sing “Scarborough Fair” by Simon and Garfunkel.
You can use any kind of bread in the recipe. And dried or fresh herbs would be fine–if you can get your hands on fresh, they’re great. We have rosemary, thyme, and parsley in the garden. I bought a bunch of parsley. If you’re using dried herbs, you may want to reduce the quantities slightly.
The Recipe
Serves 4
6 slices of whole wheat bread, cubed (I used Dave’s Killer Bread with lots of seeds in it)
1 medium onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 stalks celery, diced
2 Tbls fresh sage, minced
1 Tbls fresh thyme, minced
1 tsp fresh rosemary, minced + 1 sprig
1/2 cup parsley, chopped
1/2 cup vegetable stock
splash of olive oil
salt and pepper
Preheat oven to 250 F. Cut the bread into smallish cubes. Spread on a baking sheet in a single layer and toast them in the oven, with the door cracked open for about 20-25 minutes. The bread should be dried out and toasted, like croutons. While the bread is toasting, chop finely the onions and celery, and mince the garlic. In a large skillet, saute the onions and garlic with a splash of olive oil for a 3-5 minutes. Add the celery. Add the sage, rosemary, thyme, and a few generous grinds of black pepper. Stir to combine herbs and vegetables. Add the parsley. Cook for about 10 minutes until slightly soft.
When slightly soft, turn off heat and set aside. When the bread is toasted, toss it into a large mixing bowl. Add the vegetables and toss together. Drizzle the 1/2 cup of vegetable stock over the top and toss well to combine. Taste and add some salt if needed. Transfer stuffing to a covered baking dish. Put the sprig of fresh rosemary on top of the stuffing.
Preheat oven to 350 F and bake stuffing, covered, for about 40 minutes. It should get a little soft and a little crispy. If you like extra crispy stuffing, remove the cover for the last 10 minutes of baking to allow it to crisp up. Enjoy!
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