Simple Stuffing

Thanksgiving has come and gone. I'm not exactly sad to see it go. I think Thanksgiving is one of the busiest holidays, with not so much prep time on my part. This week found me with our end of season cheer banquet Monday night (where I made 50 cupcakes), the Kiss 108 Turkey Toss with my senior cheerleaders on Wednesday morning, which I got up at 4:00am for, then the afternoon to prep (after a nap of course), and then I was out for the night. Thanksgiving morning I was up for the high school football game, which left me with 20 minutes after I got home to get ready to head to dinner/lunch at my aunt and uncle's. Then after that, we headed off to Dan's parents for dessert. We got home about 8 and I was asleep by 9:30.

After the cheer banquet, we always have plenty of leftovers. I took home a lot of cupcakes, cake, cookies, brownies and bread. Desserts are easy to use up, but the bread was another story. We rarely go through a loaf of bread here, so I decided I would try and make a stuffing with it. I already had plans to make whoopie pies and possibly a banana bread (which I haven't made yet). I researched some stuffing recipes and decided on one that seemed quick and easy. This recipe could potentially be decently cheap as well, but I did my shopping at Trader Joe's, so a few of the ingredients were pricier than I would have liked. I think by Wednesday afternoon my kitchen was an absolute disaster, with dishes ready to tumble out of the sink from being piled so high. Thankfully, Dan knows that I am a messy cook and did all of the dishes! What would I do without him?

I deviated a little from the original recipe. I used ground turkey instead of sausage (only because TJ's didn't have ground sausage). I definitely recommend using only 1-2 cups of chicken stock when you make this. I used about 3.5 cups and my stuffing was too soft, almost soggy/mushy. It was still tasty, but not the texture I was hoping for, any I like my stuffing a bit softer.

Simple Stuffing
adapted from The Kitchn

1 lb loaf of bread (preferably artisan), cut into small cubes
1 lb. ground turkey (or sausage)
1 yellow onion, diced
3-4 celery stalks, diced
1 apple, diced (I placed my diced apple in a bowl with a little water and a squirt of lemon juice to keep them from browning)
2 tbsp. fresh sage, minced (or other herbs you prefer)
Salt to taste
3 large eggs
1-2 cups of chicken stock for drier stuffing, 3-4 cups for softer stuffing

1. Preheat oven to 350. Spread the bread cubes onto 2 cookie sheets and bake for 10 minutes. Stir and bake for 10 more minutes. Remove from oven and let cool. Turn oven to 400.
2. Brown the turkey in a skillet over medium heat until no longer pink. Set aside in a large mixing bowl, reserving a tablespoon or so of the drippings.
3. Return pan to heat and add the onions with a sprinkle of salt. Cook until onions begins to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the celery and cook another 3 minutes until celery begins to soften. Add in the apple and sage and cook just until apples begin to soften. Transfer vegetables and apple to the mixing bowl with the turkey and sprinkle with salt.
4. Add the bread cubes. Add the eggs to the mix and combine until everything is well coated.
5. Transfer to a 3-4 quart baking dish. Evenly cover the mix with chicken stock.
6. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 10-15 minutes until the top is lightly browned.