Sausage Stuffing

This classic sausage stuffing has all the perfect flavors of Thanksgiving in one dish. It is buttery, moist, and loaded with sausage, apples, and pecans!

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Keyword sausage recipes, Thanksgiving recipes, Thanksgiving side dishes

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 1

Total Time 1 15

Servings -10 servings

Calories 740kcal

Author Kathleen

Ingredients

8 cups 1/2-inch sourdough bread cubes
1 cup butter
1 cup celery, diced
1 1/2 cups onion, diced
2 granny smith apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 pound pork sausage
1 1/2 cups toasted pecans, chopped
1/2 cup dried cranberries
2 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon dried poultry seasoning
1 teaspoon dried ground sage

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Spray a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
Arrange bread cubes (8 cups) in a single layer on a large rimmed baking sheet. Bake in preheated oven for 5-7 minutes. Transfer bread cubes to a large mixing bowl.
In a large pan, melt butter (1 cup). Add onion (1 1/2 cups), celery (1 cup), apples (2), salt (1 teaspoon), and pepper (1/2 teaspoon) and saute over medium-low heat until vegetables are soft, about 10 minutes. Add mixture to bread cubes.
In the same pan, cook and crumble (into large pieces) the sausage (1 pound) over medium heat, until there is no longer any pink. Add the sausage and pan drippings to the bread cubes.
Add the pecans (1 1/2 cups), cranberries (1/2 cup), chicken broth (2 1/2 cups), egg (1), poultry seasoning (1 teaspoon), and sage (1 teaspoon) to bread cubes and toss until evenly combined. Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish. Bake for 30-40 minutes, uncovered, until golden and crisp on top and hot in the middle.

Notes

Bread Cubes: My recipe calls for the bread to be cut into about 1/2-inch cubes. That said, my Mom always made them about half the size. It's totally a personal preference.
Toasting: After cutting my bread into cubes I lightly toast them in the oven. I spread them out in a single layer and bake them until they're lightly toasted, not browned. I check the bottoms of the cubes to make sure that they have that toasted texture.
Pork Sausage: I use a premium pork bulk sausage, like Jimmy Dean. No casing to remove.

Nutrition