Sausage & Cranberry Stuffing

By Angela Nolan / December 18, 2010 / Recipes

Click here to download the sausage and cranberry stuffing recipe (PDF)

Ingredients

6 cups dried bread cubes, 1/4-1/2”
½ cup dried cranberries (or more to taste)
½ cup Grand Marnier (optional)
½ cup butter
½ lb. sage seasoned pork sausage or fresh sausage of choice
1 cup onion, chopped
3/4 cup celery, chopped, including leaves
2 tbsp fresh sage leaves, chopped (2 tsp. dried)
1 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped (1 tsp. dried)
¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped - fresh is best
salt & pepper to taste
½ cup white wine, stock or apple cider
½ - 1½ cups additional stock or low sodium broth

Directions

Tear or cut bread into 1/4 - 1/2” cubes and dry the bread to avoid soggy, mushy stuffing.
You can dry bread cubes by spreading them out on a baking sheet. Leave uncovered overnight or for a day OR bake on baking sheet at 225 degrees for 30-60 minutes.
Place dried bread cubes in large bowl.
Pour Grand Marnier over dried cranberries in small saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and set aside.
In large skillet over medium-high heat, brown sausage, stirring to break up clumps.
Using a slotted spoon, remove cooked sausage to bowl with bread.
Remove all but 2 tablespoons of fat from skillet and add butter.
Over medium heat, once butter has melted, add the onion, celery, and dried herbs (if using dried versus fresh herbs).
Cook, covered, until onion is tender, about 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Remove from heat. (By covering the vegetables, you are “sweating” them to release their flavour without browning and evaporating tasty juices.)
Add the sautéed vegetables to the bread pieces and sausage.
Add the cranberries and fresh herbs (if using fresh versus dried herbs) and fresh parsley.
Deglaze (i.e., quickly heating liquid in skillet, stirring to lift particles of food from skillet.) skillet with 1/2 cup wine, stock or cider, and pour over bread and vegetables. Toss to coat.
Season with salt and pepper.
Add additional broth to achieve the correct moisture level.
To stuff bird, this stuffing should just hold together when mound on a spoon. Stuff the bird loosely, leaving at least 1/2” space to allow expansion of stuffing during cooking.
To the remaining stuffing or if you are not stuffing the bird just cooking as dressing, add ½ Cup to 2 cups of stock or broth 1/4 cup at a time until the dressing looks as moist as you’d like it.
Place dressing in a buttered casserole dish and bake COVERED 30-45 minutes in a 350 degree oven.
UNCOVER and cook an additional 10-15 minutes until golden brown.