My family loves my cornbread stuffing or “dressing” is what we really call it. It has always been a staple in our home for every holiday. The recipe has passed down from generations. While I’ve made some changes to the way I prepare stuffing I tried not to venture too far from the recipe and it is every bit as delicious as the original.
You may be wondering why my family calls it “dressing” in the first place. Well, it is a cultural thing and most African American families call it dressing. I believe it is because it dresses the turkey. Now, I might be wrong but it sounds logical.
Here’s a funny little story. One year at Thanksgiving I decided to try a new stuffing recipe instead of making the tried and true recipe I had been making for years. I was so excited and couldn’t wait for my family to taste it. This new stuffing had sausage and apples in it and it was really very tasty. I just knew they would love it. Boy was I ever wrong. My family lambasted me for switching things up at the last minute and I was floored. I never imagined they would be so upset. They told me they were looking forward to our staple dishes and the dressing was something not to be altered unless there was another pan of regular dressing. So, needless to say, I never did that again. I think back on that time and can laugh at it now. It just reminds me that we really are creatures of habit.
Does your family have any favorite recipes they expect to see at holiday time?
One thing that I believe is universal is our love for stuffing or dressing at holiday time. Here’s my recipe.
Cornbread Stuffing Recipe
(1) 10-12 inch pan of cornbread
(1) 12-ounce bag of Pepperidge Farm Corn Bread Classic Stuffing
2 cups of chicken broth or chicken/turkey drippings you reserved from a previous meal
1 or 2 carrots, finely chopped
2 stalks of celery, finely chopped
One medium onion, finely chopped
1 Tablespoon of finely chopped fresh thyme leaves if you are NOT using your own chicken or turkey drippings
2 cans of Cream of Chicken Soup (you can replace one can of Cream of Chicken with Cream of Celery or Cream of Mushroom it’s your choice. I usually do two cans of Cream of Chicken but either will work nicely).
If you like sage in your dressing feel free to add 3-5 Tablespoons of freshly chopped sage leaves should work nicely.
RECIPE NOTES:
Make your pan of cornbread the day before or early in the morning so it’s cool when ready to use.
Cut the cornbread into squares and then crumble it up. You want it finely crumbled.
If you don’t have a food processor, using 2 Tables of butter, sauté the vegetables for three to five minutes until tender. If you have a food processor to finely chop the vegetables, sautéing is unnecessary as they will soften while cooking.
Place crumbled cornbread in a large pot or bowl; one you can stir in and not spill onto the counter.
Add the bag or Pepperidge Farm Cornbread Classic Stuffing. Mix this thoroughly together.
Stir in the chopped vegetables.
Stir in the two cans of Cream of Chicken soup until well mixed.
Pour in the chicken broth or turkey drippings, whichever you have. You will want this mixture to be moist enough to pour. Almost like a thick cornbread mixture. Add more chicken broth if needed.
Now here’s the thing…I really haven’t added a lot of seasoning here because I have them in my turkey drippings and there are seasonings in the Pepperidge Farm Cornbread Classic Stuffing so I’ve got what I need here. There is also salt in the canned soups. But feel free to taste the dressing batter to see if the taste is pleasing to you. There are no raw ingredients to pose a problem so taste if you like, knowing you can sprinkle in some salt and pepper if you like keeping in mind you will be adding drippings to the dressing when it’s almost done, so hold off on the sale if you can.
Turn the stuffing mixture into a buttered 9 x 13 casserole dish. Spread it evenly in the dish.
Bake in the oven at 350 degrees F for about 30 minutes at 350.
When just about done, pour or spoon turkey or chicken drippings over the dressing.
Bake another 10 or 15 minutes.
Remove from the oven and enjoy!
