Hello November! What better way to kick off the month than with this show stopping Thanksgiving side dish? My Traditional Stuffing with a Southern Twist is the result of years of experimenting and I’m so excited to finally share it.
I grew up in East Texas having only cornbread dressing and I loved it. It was all cornbread and full of dried herbs, creamed corn, and pieces of boiled egg. I know that sounds weird to some but it is amazing! Then I married a Utah boy and his family only served traditional bread stuffing. It’s great but I needed more than just buttery bread cubes and herbs. After years of trying different recipes, I came up with the perfect marriage of the two. (See what I did there?)
What makes it traditional stuffing? The white French bread cubes and the fresh herbs. What gives it a southern twist? The cubed cornbread and the dried sage. Cornbread dressing has TONS of dried sage. I also added eggs (Not boiled! Ha!) so that everything held together more like a bread pudding. The result is incredible! Even my youngest who “hates” all stuffing said it was so good she wants it every week. Win!!!
What Bread to Use for the Stuffing
The best white bread for the stuffing is French bread because it holds up to the liquid and still has some bite to it. I am not a fan of using white sandwich bread like many do because it just turns to mush.
Just grab a loaf from your grocery store, cube it up, and toast it in the oven to dry it out a bit.
For the cornbread, you’ll need an 8×8 pan of it so the choice is yours on making homemade or a box mix. I like to use a box mix for this and my favorite brand is Fleishmann’s if you can find it.
Bake and then cut into cubes once it has cooled.
Preparing the Traditional Stuffing with a Southern Twist
For the vegetables, you’ll just use celery and shallots. I chose shallots because the onion flavor isn’t overpowering and they have a slight garlic taste. They’re beautiful too with the green celery!
Sauté the vegetables in butter until they are tender. Your home will smell amazing!
Next, grab the biggest bowl you can find and add your French bread and cornbread cubes and add to it.
Add buttered vegetables, fresh thyme, fresh parsley, dried sage, salt and pepper. Stir to combine well then pour on the chicken broth. At this point, STOP. You need to taste the mixture and make sure that it has the right amount of salt and herbs for your taste then feel free to add more. THEN add the eggs and stir gently to combine.
Add to a greased 9×13 baking dish and bake until golden. Your home will smell even more amazing at this point!
Feature Recipe for November
My Traditional Stuffing with a Southern Twist will be the featured recipe at all Lee’s Marketplace locations during the month of November. If you have one near you, make sure to check out the display which will include a large poster of this beautiful dish, the dry ingredients to grab and a paper copy of the recipe.
I hope that this finds it way on your tables for Thanksgiving! It truly is a recipe that I’m very proud of and I know you’ll love it as much as my family does. The combination of traditional bread stuffing with the sweet addition of cornbread is the perfect match!
More Thanksgiving Recipes to Try
Sweet and Spicy Jalapeno Cranberry Sauce
Italian Sausage & Mushroom Stuffed Acorn Squash
Traditional Stuffing with a Southern Twist
Ingredients
- 1 loaf French bread, cubed
- 1 8×8 pan baked cornbread, cubed
- 3/4 cup butter (1 1/2 sticks)
- 3 whole shallots, peeled and diced
- 3-4 celery stalks, diced
- 3 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
- 1/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 1/2 tablespoons dried rubbed sage
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 32 oz low sodium chicken broth
- 3 eggs, beaten
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a 9×13 baking dish by spraying with cooking spray or coating with softened butter.
- Place cubed French bread on a baking sheet in a single layer. Place in oven and cook for 15-20 minutes or until bread is lightly toasted. Set aside.
- Add butter to a skillet over medium heat. Add shallots and celery then cook until softened.
- In a large bowl, add French bread cubes, cornbread cubes, shallot/celery mixture with butter, thyme, parsley, sage, salt and pepper. Toss to combine well.
- Add chicken broth and gently stir to combine. Taste and add more salt, pepper, and/or herbs if desired. Once taste is confirmed, add eggs and gently stir to combine well.
- Pour into prepared baking dish and bake for 40-45 minutes or until top is golden brown.
Notes
- Use any cornbread recipe that you like whether its homemade or a boxed mix.
- Fresh sage can be used instead of dried. Increase the amount by double if using fresh.
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