3 Thanksgiving-Appropriate Recipes for National Stuffing Day

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Stuffing, a staple dish on Thanksgiving tables across America, is celebrated on November 21 — National Stuffing Day. Whether you prefer a more traditional recipe or want to try something unique, here are three great stuffing recipes for your National Stuffing Day or Thanksgiving dinner.

Classic Sausage and Herb Stuffing

Traditional Thanksgiving stuffing includes Italian sausage and a variety of herbs, and this simple recipe is a perfect way to make it. Start by preheating your oven to 350°F and greasing a 9×13-inch baking dish with butter. Place eight cups of cubed bread or store-bought unseasoned stuffing cubes in a large mixing bowl. In a large sauté pan, melt a stick of unsalted butter, then add 1 ½ cups of diced yellow onions and one cup of diced celery. Cook this over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for about eight minutes, or until the vegetables are soft. Add four finely chopped cloves of garlic and cook for another two minutes, then add the vegetable mixture to your bread cubes.

Scrape any leftover vegetable material out of the sauté pan, then use it to cook one pound of Italian sausage over medium heat for eight to ten minutes or until cooked through. Add the sausage and any sausage fat to your bread cubes and vegetables. Add 2 ¾ cups of low sodium chicken broth, one large beaten egg, a tablespoon each of chopped rosemary and sage, ¼ cup of chopped parsley, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix this until the bread is soft and moistened. Move the stuffing to your baking dish and bake it for 65 to 75 minutes, until it’s golden and crispy on top.

Vegan Mushroom Stuffing

For those looking for a vegan or vegetarian option, this vegan mushroom stuffing is a perfect pick. Start by preheating your oven to 350°F and adding a loaf of cubed bread to a large mixing bowl. In a skillet, sautee one diced large onion and three diced celery stalks in three tablespoons of olive oil on medium heat for seven to eight minutes or until the onions are translucent. Add 16 ounces of sliced mushrooms, two tablespoons of dried thyme, a teaspoon and a half of dried sage, a teaspoon of rosemary, and salt and pepper to taste. Cook the mixture for eight to 10 minutes or until everything is softened and fragrant.

Thoroughly mix your cooked vegetables in with the diced bread, then add a cup of vegetable broth and mix until everything is moistened. If it looks too dry, add another ¼ to ½ cup of vegetable broth. Add ¼ cup of chopped parsley and mix everything well, then transfer it to a rectangular baking dish. Cover the dish with foil and bake it for 50 minutes, then uncover it and bake for another 10 minutes or until the edges are slightly crispy.

Sweet Potato and Pecan Stuffing

Try mixing a few classic Thanksgiving foods together with this sweet potato and pecan stuffing. Start by cooking a pound of mild country sausage over medium heat in a large pot or skillet. When it’s fully cooked, use a slotted spoon to move it to a paper towel-lined plate and set it aside.

Add six tablespoons of butter to the pan and turn the heat up to medium-high. When the butter melts, add four peeled and cubed sweet potatoes, two diced onions, three diced celery stalks, two tablespoons of chopped fresh sage, and a teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Sauté everything in the pan until the onions are soft but not yet brown, then add 1 ⅓ cups of orange juice and bring it to a boil. Cook until the sweet potatoes are almost tender.

In a separate mixing bowl, mix 12 ounces of unseasoned bread cubes, the cooked sausage, the sweet potato mixture, a cup each of chopped pecans and raisins, and another teaspoon of salt and pepper. Preheat your oven to 350°F and heavily butter a 15×10 baking dish. Beat together three eggs and 1 ⅓ cups of chicken broth in a small bowl, then pour the liquids over the stuffing mixture and toss everything to combine. Transfer this all to the baking dish and bake it for 50 minutes or until the top is lightly crispy.