Rustic Turkey Stuffing, 4 Ways

Ingredients

10 cups	bite-sized pieces white bread (about 1 loaf)
¼ cup	unsalted butter, plus more for preparing sheet pan
1 ½ cups	diced sweet onion
1 cup	diced celery
2 tsp	minced garlic
2 tsp	finely chopped fresh thyme
1 tsp	finely chopped fresh sage
¼ cup	chopped fresh parsley
1 ¼ cup	low sodium chicken stock

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter an 8-inch square baking dish and set aside.
2. Divide bread in a single layer on two rimmed sheet pans. Bake until toasted but not browned, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl and set aside.
3. Melt butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add onions, celery, garlic, thyme and sage. Cook, stirring occasionally until vegetables soften, about 8 minutes.
   To try one of our variations, substitute step 3 with an alternative below.
4. Pour mixture over bread. Add parsley and half of specified stock to mixture and mix well. Add remaining stock, a little at a time, until bread is moistened but not wet. Season generously with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.

2. Wild Rice & Mushroom Stuffing
Step 3: Melt butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add onions, celery, garlic, thyme, sage and 2 cups chopped fresh mushrooms (shiitake, oyster, chanterelle). Cook, stirring occasionally until vegetables soften, about 8 minutes. Add ¼ cup Madeira* and simmer until most liquid evaporates, about 1 minute. Stir in 1 ½ cups cooked wild rice. Continue with Step 4, using 1 ¼ cups stock.
For wild rice: Place 1 cup rice and 4 cups cold water in a pot and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer over low heat for 25 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit 10 minutes. Drain.

3. Fennel & Sausage Stuffing
Step 3: Melt butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add onions, celery, garlic, thyme, sage, ½ cup diced fennel and ½ teaspoon fennel seed. Cook, stirring occasionally until vegetables soften, about 8 minutes. Stir in ½ pound Italian sausage, removed from casing. Use a wooden spoon to break sausage into small pieces and cook until sausage is no longer pink. Continue with Step 4, using ½ cup stock.

4. Fruit & Nut Stuffing
Step 3: Melt butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add onions, celery, garlic, thyme and sage. Cook, stirring occasionally until vegetables soften, about 8 minutes. Add ½ cup white wine, ¼ cup pitted, chopped prunes and ¼ cup dried cranberries. Simmer until most liquid evaporates, 5 minutes. Add ½ cup toasted, chopped pecans and mix well. Continue with Step 4, using ²/³ cup stock.
Chef’s Tip: Diced apricots, dried cherries or dried apples also taste great!

Serves

Makes 10 Cups

Nutrition Info

Per ½ cup of Simple Rustic Stuffing: 70 calories, 3 g fat, 2 g protein, 9 g carbs, 1 g fibre.

Per ½ cup of Wild Rice & Mushroom Stuffing: 77 calories, 3 g fat, 2 g protein, 11 g carbs, 1 g fibre.

Per ½ cup of Fennel & Sausage Stuffing: 95 calories, 5 g fat, 3 g protein, 8 g carbs, 1 g fibre.

Per ½ cup of Fruit & Nut Stuffing: 102 calories, 5 g fat, 2 g protein, 12 g carbs, 1 g fibre.