Traditional Sage and Onion Stuffing

I love stuffing. And if you've read my blog for any length of time, you know I'm a recovering super-picky eater. I'm still picky, don't get me wrong, but I've grown a lot in terms of what I am willing to try these days. Stuffing used to be on the "I-will-never-eat-that" list. I can't quite remember when I tried it, but I think it was during one of the first Thanksgiving dinners I prepared. And wow, I loved it. Couldn't believe I rejected it all these years. It's quickly become one of my favorite parts of the Thanksgiving meal, and half of the reason that I enjoy roasting a chicken every now and again (that and the gravy, of course). Here's the not-so-super-secret method of making stuffing at my house on Thanksgiving:


Traditional Sage and Onion Stuffing
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You can make this stuffing one of two different ways - you can make it with the bread cubes and spices from a bag mix, or you can make everything from scratch. Both are quite tasty, it just depends on which is more your style.

Stuffing (from a bag):

I've always found that the Kellogg's stuffing mix is the tastiest. It has also become the hardest to find in recent years. Pepperidge Farm is an OK substitute, but try to find the Kellogg's one first.

- Melt butter/margarine as called for on bag, based on the size of your turkey.
- Add ½ - 1 tsp sage - your butter should smell sage-y, that's how you'll know there's enough.
- Stir for a few minutes.
- Use chicken broth for liquid, rather than water, as based on package instructions.
- Follow rest of package instructions.
- If not all your stuffing fits in your turkey, place it in a casserole dish, after greasing it with Pam or Crisco, then cover with aluminum foil. Bake at 350 (ish) for at least 30 minutes, but wait until the turkey is done or almost done to stick it in the oven.


Homemade Stuffing:
2 T butter
1/2 c minced onion
1/4 minced celery
1 tsp sage
1 tsp thyme
1 can chicken broth
6-8 slices of bread, left out overnight to get a little stale, then torn into pieces

- This should be enough stuffing for a 8-9 lb turkey - I usually double this, in part because my turkey is bigger and also because we really like stuffing. A lot.
- Put 2 T butter in a small frying pan, add ½ c minced onion, ¼ minced celery, sauté lightly for 5 minutes, then stir in 1 t sage and 1 t thyme, then add 1 can chicken broth and simmer a few minutes. Meanwhile, put stuffing mix in bowl, put broken up bread on top of that. Now pour warm mixture over this and mix. You’ll need more liquid. The can of chicken broth is a little more than one cup. The package directions call for water, but use broth. Mix all of this up. If it seems too dry, add broth. It if seems too wet, don’t worry about it.
- If not all your stuffing fits in your turkey, place it in a casserole dish, after greasing it with Pam or Crisco, then cover with aluminum foil. Bake at 350 (ish) for at least 30 minutes, but wait until the turkey is done or almost done to stick it in the oven.
- As soon as turkey is stuffed, you should put it right in the oven.


This is part four of my Thanksgiving survival series. Tomorrow, I'll cover a chocolate pie called French Silk Pie. If you've missed a day, here's some links for you:

Infamous Pumpkin Pie
Gravy 101
Cream Biscuits

And there's also my Thanksgiving Timeline, which will hopefully save you some time and sanity!