Sunday Suppers: Sausage & Apple Dressing

It's a question as old as time and almost guaranteed to start a war...is it stuffing or dressing? My vote is dressing ONLY because I don't get it anywhere NEAR the bird. I'm not risking salmonella just to have juicy turkey. Regardless of what you call it, this exciting twist gives just the right nod to the traditional while giving your taste buds something new!

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Ingredients

• 16 - 20 oz. of Stuffing Cubes

• 16 oz. Pork Breakfast Sausage

• 2 tbls diced Sage

• 2 Large Granny Smith Apples

• 1/2 cup Diced Onions

• 1/2 cup Diced Celery

• 1 cup Dried Cranberries

• 1 cup Pecan Pieces

• 3 cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth

Step 1: Dice & Saute

Your goodies above probably didn't all come already diced, so let's get them prepped. Dice the onion (you need 1/2 cup after being diced but, don't get too worried over exactly how to measure this, onion to taste!), the celery (we've left this out since I'm the only one that tolerates them so, you do you!) and the granny smith's. I usually go for larger dice on the apples and small for the other two items.

Pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees F.

In a saute pan, break up your breakfast sausage into really small chunks and brown fully. You don't need hard, crispy bits, just for it to be cooked through completely. Side note, extra credit if you can find the Sage breakfast sausage, my grocery store doesn't always have it. In its place, we always go for the "Hot" version...."In this house, we do spicy" - Margaritas 24:7.

Then add the 3 diced ingredients and the Sage. You're not looking for color really, just to get them to soften a bit. Sage wise, I prefer fresh here because it's softer in texture. If you go for dried, use just 1 tbls instead - stuff's strong!

In a small pot, bring the chicken stock to a boil.

In a mixing bowl, add the dressing cubes (fresh, boxed or pre-made mix, all of them are great; just remember if you go for fresh, the cubes are more tender so be gentle) and the sausage and veg mixture. Gentle fold to combine all of the ingredients before introducing liquids (don't bother pouring off any grease from the sausage, that's FLAVOR).

Here's where it gets tricky...pour in about 2/3 of the chicken stock and gently fold in. You want everything to be damp, not drenched but, you also don't want totally dry pieces sticking up either. Add as much or as little of the remaining chicken stock until you get to the right texture.

Step 2: Bake

Pour the dressing into an oven-safe baking dish. If you like a softer texture overall, go for something smaller with high walls/sides. If you're team texture like I am, go for a more shallow baking dish so the ratio of top to thickness offers you more! I don't bother totally leveling off the top but, I do get it level-ish. Cover in foil and bake for 35-40 minutes. Remove the foil and go another 5-10 minutes depending on how brown and crunchy you like your dressing tops. Be careful not to go overboard here if you went for a shallow dish, you'll have a thanksgiving flavored cutting board.

Enjoy!

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Vote Now! Is it Dressing or Stuffing?

Comment below; what's this delicious side called on your Thanksgiving table? Whatever you call it, don't take it too seriously. Remember is is a day of thanks and enjoy those around the table with you!