Stuffing
My family's stuffing recipe. Very easily made vegan and as delicious (some might even say it is better!). Use it to stuff your turkey or as a separate dish on your Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner table.
Equipment
- Casserole dish
Ingredients
- 2 lbs sausage (whatever type you like. I used italian sausages but I have used mexican chorizo before as well) (omit if vegan)
- 1 cup quinoa (cooked and seasoned) (optional if you are using sausage/ you are not making vegan stuffing)
- 1 cup small white beans (optional)(cooked and seasoned)(optional if you are using sausage/ you are not making vegan stuffing) (make ahead of time from dried beans or use canned)
- 1 loaf (whole wheat) bread (cubed)(use a sturdy robust bread. You can use gluten free bread as well)
- ½ cup butter (or use margarine/vegan butter/olive oil)
- 2 large onions (chopped)
- 3 cloves garlic (minced)
- 8 stalks celery (diced)
- 2 large green apples (peeled and cubed)
- 1½ cup pecans (chopped)
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 2 oranges (zest and juice)(or use 1 big lemon and 1 orange)
- 1-2 tbsp seasoning (to taste) (sage, pepper, thyme, oregano, tarragon, parsley.. whatever you have on hand and like. I used sage, thyme and oregano)
- 1 tsp pumpkin spice!! (to taste)
- salt and pepper (to taste)
- 2 tbsp almond meal (to sprinkle on stuffing that will be baked outside a turkey)
- 1-2 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)(for sprinkle on the vegan casserole)
Instructions
- AHEAD OF TIME: If you are using white beans and you are making them from dried beans, make them ahead of time. They need quite some time (2 hours?). So maybe even make them the day before. Make sure to season the water the beans are cooking in.
- Preheat your oven to 360F/180C.
- Meat: Start by cubing and frying the sausage if you are not make the vegan version. Vegan: If you are (also) making the vegan version, prepare the quinoa at this stage (as well). It is important that the water the quinoa is prepared in, is well seasoned (add salt (and seasoning) or use vegetable broth).
- While frying the meat/preparing the quinoa, cube the bread and add them to a medium size mixing bowl. Go for 1x1-inch cubes. Then toss the cubes with butter/vegan butter/olive oil.
- Meat: For the stuffing with meat add onions, celery and garlic to the browned meat and cook them until they are tender. Add to the bread cubes and toss. Add the apple, nuts, zest, cranberries, pumpkin spice and other seasoning to taste, tossing again and again until well mixed. Lastly add a few table spoons of orange juice just enough to moisten the mixture a bit (making sure not to get it soggy) and stir to combine.Vegan: For the vegan stuffing brown the onion, celery and garlic in a bit of olive oil until they are tender. Add the mixture to the bread cubes and toss again and again until well combined. Now add the prepared quinoa, beans, apple, nuts, zest, cranberries, pumpkin spice and other seasoning and repeat the tossing. Add a few table spoons of orange juice just enough to moisten the mixture a bit (the juice from the oranges used for the zest) and stir to combine.
- The stuffing is ready. So now you can use it to stuff your turkey or transfer it to an oven dish and sprinkle with almond meal (and also some nutritional yeast on the vegan stuffing).
- If you don't stuff it in your turkey, but prepare it seperately, bake it in the preheated oven for 35-45 minutes until crispy along the edges.
Notes
Calories for vegan stuffing: 390 kcal per large serving from casserole
Calories for meat stuffing: 527 kcal per large serving from casserole
Nutritional information:
the information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist's advice.