Ingredients
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1½ pounds hearty white sandwich Bread
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6 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
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2 Celery Ribs
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1 Onion
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¼ cup minced fresh Parsley
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1½ tablespoons minced fresh Sage
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1½ tablespoons minced fresh Thyme
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1½ teaspoons minced fresh Marjoram
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2½ cups Chicken broth
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2 large Egg
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1 teaspoon Salt
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1 teaspoon Black Pepper
Directions
Since a stuffed turkey takes longer to cook and often results in overcooked meat, we usually prefer to cook our stuffing outside the bird. For this recipe, we aimed to create a stuffing that would have a great balance of flavors and textures. The secret lay in the ratio of bread to liquid to aromatics and other flavorings. Half-inch cubes of bread made the stuffing pleasantly chunky and allowed the other ingredients to be distributed evenly throughout. Tasters preferred chicken broth to other liquid ingredients since it gave the stuffing clean, savory flavor, and a couple of eggs offered richness, moisture, and structure. Aromatics like celery, onion, and herbs gave the stuffing a classic flavor profile. Covering the stuffing for only part of the baking time ensured that it was moist throughout with a crispy, crunchy lid. Instead of oven drying in step 1, you can let bread stale overnight at room temperature. This recipe can be doubled and baked in a 15 by 10-inch baking dish for a larger crowd.
Steps
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1
Done
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Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees. Grease 13 by 9-inch baking dish. Spread bread onto rimmed baking sheet and bake, stirring occasionally, until bread is dry, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Let bread cool completely on sheet, about 30 minutes. |
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2
Done
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Increase oven temperature to 400 degrees. Melt butter in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add celery and onion and cook until softened, about 10 minutes. Stir in parsley, sage, thyme, and marjoram and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Transfer to very large bowl. |
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3
Done
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Add dried, cooled bread, broth, eggs, salt, and pepper to vegetable mixture and toss to combine. Transfer mixture to prepared baking dish. |
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4
Done
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Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 25 minutes. Remove foil and continue to bake until golden, about 30 minutes longer. Let cool for 10 minutes and serve. |
