Southern Corn Bread Dressing

I wished turkeys were available year round at our local grocers. I love Thanksgiving because of the turkey and dressing. I say dressing because I don’t stuff the turkey with it. In fact, I have never eaten “stuffing” other than  Stove Top, and I’m sorry but that doesn’t qualify as REAL stuffing anymore than snorting crushed aspirin would be a suitable replacement for cocaine, according to addict aficionados.

Dressing isn’t as difficult to make a you might think. Throw in a bunch of ingredients that you like and cook until done. It’s time consuming but not hard. The easiest way to smooth the time edge is to do all the prep work the day before. Like teaching, it’s all in the planning.

I like to buy Pepperidge Farm Corn Bread Stuffing. I have also made dressing with half of the Corn Bread Stuffing and half of the Pepperidge Farm Herb Seasoned Stuffing. It’s really whatever you like. This is a basic southern dressing. After trying it once, find other recipes that offer other ingredients like oysters, raisins, sausage or take away ingredients that I use.

Heat the oven to 350

You’ll want to dice celery and onion in equal amount that total at least four cups. Saute the celery and onions in about 3 tablespoons of butter until nice and transparent.

You’ll need about 6 boiled eggs and 49-oz can of chicken broth and another 4-6 tablespoons of butter.

Spray a large casserole dish with Pam and add the whole package of corn bread. 

Next add the sauteed vegetables and slice up the butter and add to the casserole dish.

After peeling the boiled eggs, chop them up. If you don’t have an egg slicer, this is an easy way to hand chop them: if you’re right handed put the peeled egg in your left hand. Using a small paring knife-as opposed to one that could cut through bone, i.e. your fingers!- make 3 slices lengthway down the egg. Then flip the egg over a quarter turn and make three more lengthway cuts. Now start at one end of the egg and start making small cuts all the way to the other end. I’ll have to post a video. It’s really easier to do than reading the instructions about it.

Here’s the tricky part. Shake the chicken broth up before opening it. You’ll want to pour, stop and mix, and pour some more. You won’t use all of the can, but you’ll want your mixture soupy-but not sloppy.

After all of this is mixed well with a wooden spoon, it’s time for seasoning. I keep it simple like my dad does-sea salt and pepper in a grinding mill and about 2 tablespoons of sage. Of course a sprinkle of garlic salt would hurt no one. 

This goes in the oven for 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours, but start checking early because you don’t want it to burn, but neither do you want it to be soupy. All the chicken broth should be cooked out.

To prep the day before you need the dish, dice and cook the vegetables and put in a Tupperware in the fridge. Boil the eggs and peel them and put them in a Ziploc. Doing these two steps ahead of time makes it easy to throw together.

If you have an aversion to boiled eggs don’t use them. If you despise onions then use onion powder. You could also you celery salt for the sauteed celery but then you’re basically eating cornbread that’s been cooked in chicken broth, but it’s your kitchen and your guests. This is a good starter recipe that you can add all the things you love to it. You could even make this completely homemade by making cornbread (instead of using the Pepperidge Farm package) and using chicken broth from cooking bone-in chicken.

Happy Cooking!

Dressing

1 pkg Pepperidge Farm, 1/2 Herb Seasoned stuffing and 1/2 Corn Bread stuffing

8 Tbsp Butter, divided

3/4 C Chopped celery and onion

6 Boiled eggs, chopped

3 C Chicken stock

2 Tbsp sage

Salt & Pepper

Heat oven to 350. Spray Pam in a large casserole dish.

In a large skillet over medium heat, melt 3 Tbsp of butter and saute the celery and onion until clear.

In casserole dish add the stuffing, cooked vegetables, 2 Tbsp butter, eggs, chicken stock, and seasonings. MIx well.

Bake for 45 minutes-1 1/2 -2 hours