The Ultimate Stuffing...

The other day I posted my recipe for Cornbread Stuffing, here is another stuffing I make for Thanksgiving; because some guest do not like cornbread. I discovered this recipe several years in the Washington Post ~ Food Section and over the years I have adjusted the ratio of ingredients & spices to create the Ultimate Turkey Stuffing. It’s a new twist on an old holiday favorite. Enjoy!



Ultimate Turkey Stuffing

Ingredients:
1 cup dried cranberries
1½ cups orange liqueur
½ cup unsalted butter
2 cups chopped celery
1 large onion, chopped
1 pound spicy Italian sausage, casing removed
1 (16 ounce) package herb-seasoned bread stuffing mix
1 cup chopped pecans
4 Granny Smith apples - peeled, cored and chopped
½ cup unsalted butter, melted
2 cups chicken broth
4 teaspoons chopped fresh sage
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Place the cranberries in a small saucepan, and cover with 1 cup of liqueur. Bring to boil, remove from heat, and set aside.

In a large skillet, melt ½ cup butter over medium heat. Sauté the celery and onion in the butter for 10 minutes. Transfer to a large mixing bowl.

In the same skillet, cook the sausage over medium-high heat until crumbled and evenly brown. Drain.

Combine the sausage and stuffing mix with the celery and onion mixture. Stir in the cranberries and liqueur, pecans, and apples. Mix in melted butter, chicken broth, ½ cup orange liqueur; the stuffing should be totally moistened. Season with sage, salt, and pepper.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Butter 15x10x2-inch baking dish. Transfer stuffing to prepared dish. Cover with buttered foil and bake until heated through, about 1 hour. Uncover and bake until top is crisp, about 15 minutes.

Serves 8 to 10

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George’s notes:

• You are going to want to make enough stuffing, so there is leftovers for your turkey sandwich the day after Thanksgiving.
• Since 1947, each Thanksgiving the National Turkey Federation (NTF) and the Poultry & Egg National Board (PENB) have donated a turkey to the White House -- a tradition that is often confused with the Thanksgiving presidential turkey pardon. Officially, the presidential turkey pardon began during George H.W. Bush's first Thanksgiving in the White House in 1989. Prior to that event, presidents were more likely to eat the donated birds rather than pardon them to a petting farm for the remainder of their life.