For some time I have been looking for a good recipe for dressing that is not stuffed in the bird, but baked separately. I would appreciate any that anyone can pass on. Thanks.
By glenda eileen lockhart from Nova Scotia
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You can use this recipe from scratch or use the non-bread ingredients to jazz up a mix. I prefer from scratch, but
younger generations come close with mix plus extras (cornbread one in box). This makes a large amount, for a turkey in the 20+ pound range, and contains no meat.
I use mushrooms, celery, carrots, onion, one large clove garlic, fresh sage leaves if I have it, dried sage if I don't, crumbled or chopped, bay leaf or two, marjoram and thyme and a bit of rosemary are nice, black pepper, chicken bouillon cubes (I recommend the large soft ones, Knorr type), butter and oil, and some of broth from simmering the giblets and neck of turkey on stove for a couple of hours with a carrot, celery stock, bay leaves, etc. For large recipe I'd use 3 small carrots and couple stalks celery and one large onion. Everything should be in amounts according to family's likes and dislikes.
And for bread there are two choices: two loaves ordinary bread, one white, one wheat, or 1 recipe cornbread cooked and taken out of pan to dry out a bit (night before or few hours before), plus the other bread choices, but you won't use all of the 2 if you add cornbread so you can use just one of either kind. We're talking longer loaves, not the small 1 pound loaves. The cornbread should be for a small size pan, about 8x8 and of course you can use a corn bread mix if you'd like. We use 1 box jiffy mix, though I've done it from scratch, and found the mix a better.
Cube with knife or pull into small pieces, the bread without the crusts. Break the cornbread into somewhat larger pieces. Put all on cookie sheet and put into low oven, 200 degrees or less for a while, checking to see when they feel a little dry. Not as dry as croutons, but a little crusty, crunchy, but not browned, just dried. Or you can put in oven night before for 15-20 minutes and turn off and leave oven door cracked so can dry overnight or just take pan out and set up somewhere to dry overnight.
Meanwhile mince the onion, celery, carrots into small pieces, about 1/4 inch. Mushrooms should be fairly fine as well. Saute lightly in large pan with a bit of oil and butter. Enough so it won't stick. Don't cook too long. Set aside until bread is dry enough and cool. Get out large bowl. Put breads into bowl and crumble any large chunks of cornbread. Put pan back on medium heat and add a cup of water, a cup of the giblet broth (you can chop giblets and add if you want, our family prefers not, the dog gets the giblets) and start with a 1/2 bouillon cube if large, 1 if small. Add the spices and the mushrooms and simmer 5 minutes. Taste. If it needs more bouillon, add and dissolve. Salt and pepper to taste if needed. See how many crumbs you have in the bowl. If it's a huge amount, add 1 cup boiling water to veggie mixture.
Now here is a choice point. People used to add 1-2 scrambled eggs to dressing to hold it together, which made it kind of dense. I also think it adds to the possibility of food poisoning, so I don't do it anymore.
Toss all ingredients from pan with crumbs in bowl, and toss lightly with 2 spoons. Check to see if it needs more moisture. Probably won't. Put in a buttered pan, cover with foil and pop in oven for about 40 minutes and remove foil if you want it to crisp a bit before serving.
This is a tinker recipe. I loved dressing, don't like it so much anymore, but I used to put my heart and soul into it.
Make it yours. If you are having a smaller turkey, definitely cut all of above by half. 6-8 slices each kind of bread, one small cornbread, 1/2 a large onion, and so on.
I have used any dressing recipe that I've liked that directed to stuff the bird to use in a baking dish. Grease the pan and add a little more liquid to the dressing (less than 1/4 c. then bake at 350-375 maybe 30 or 45 min). Cover for part of the time, then baste and uncover to crisp the top (I like mine crispy but not burnt).
Five kids to feed, wow. You probably want something easy, fast and filling without breaking the budget.
Here goes:
1 batch of your best homemade cornbread crumbled.
1 loaf of stale bread (homemade or storebought) diced and toasted under the ovens broiler.
1 large onion diced
1 head of celery diced
1 stick of butter or margarine
If using meat, cook thoroughly and set aside.
Saute' the onion and celery in the butter and oil.
Add meat if using meat.
In a large bowl filled with the roasted diced bread and crumbled cornbread add the onions and celery and meat mixture and stir.
Pour 1 and 1/2 cups chicken broth over all and stir.
Place in large baking dish/pan and bake in a hot oven until done. Maybe 350-375 for up to an hour. It depends on your oven, where you live etc.
For moist stuffing keep covered while baking.
For crispy crunchy top, keep uncovered while baking.
If you have a recipe for stuffing that goes in the bird, just use same recipe in a pan. If not there are many suggested here. If it is in a bird, it is called stuffing cause you have stuffed the bird. If baked in a pan, it is called dressing. Same recipe can be used for both. I can't remember how old I was, but I was an adult when I learned the difference.
My mom made homemade onion stuffing. Can be cooked in the bird or out. 3 lbs of onions chopped and then sauteed in a frying pan till yellow and tender.salt and pepper to taste. mix in eggs and breadcrumbs. Not the big pieces of bread but the breadcrumbs you buy in the store in the can. Add nutmeg and stir well. Put in bird or pan and bake at 350 till browned. The amount of eggs and breadcrumbs you use is in proportion to how much stuffing you want.
I buy bagged corn or bread stuffing and add
chopped apple 1 or 2
chopped celery
chopped onions
chopped walnuts
chop these fine/small and sautee in butter and
add to stuffing
add chicken or turkey also and use broth
I always add about 1/2 cup of apple juice
and sometimes also 1/2 cup of orange juice
oh and I chop water chestnuts too and do not
sautee these
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