mimi’s turkey dressing

Every family has it’s “traditional” turkey dressing which is an expected requirement at Thanksgiving dinner. Cornbread, wild rice, brioche, Pepperidge Farm stuffing in a bag… Sausage, oysters, nuts, apricots…. The ingredients vary widely from family to family and often become the focus of a heated debate.

This is my family’s traditional recipe and the reason I offer to host Thanksgiving dinner. I don’t want to be disappointed by someone else’s tradition. If you’re more open-minded than I am on the topic, or if you haven’t yet established your “family recipe,” I urge you to try Mimi’s. It has all the ingredients for dressing delight.

FYI…. “Stuffing” goes into the cavity of the bird. “Dressing” goes into a casserole dish. I prefer “Stuffing,” but a stuffed bird does take longer to cook.

Ingredients:

24 slices white bread cut into 1/2” cubes

1/2 pound pork sausage cut in small pieces and browned

1 cup light, golden raisins soaked in

1 cup hot water

3 small or 2 medium onions

4 sticks celery cut fine

2 small (or 1 large) apples - cored and grated

1 tablespoon poultry seasoning

1/2 teaspoon allspice

1-1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1 cup milk - scalded

1/8 teaspoon melted butter

Directions:

Much of the prep work can be done the day ahead and set aside for assembly the next day.  This is especially helpful when preparing a Thanksgiving feast.

1. Remove casing from pork sausages and brown in butter. Cut into small pieces. (Or, use ground pork. As a child, my job was to remove the casing)

2. Grate or chop onions, dice celery and grate apples.

3. Slice bread into 1/2” cubes.

4. Soak raisins in hot water for several minutes to bring back plumpness.

5. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix thoroughly. This is often best done with a wooden spoon or hands to ensure spices and the onions, celery, apples, sausage and raisins are evenly dispersed.

6. Stuff the bird! Roast the turkey as directed on packaging for size of the fowl. Remember to follow time recommended for a “stuffed” bird. This will take longer than for a hollow turkey.

7. If you prefer to serve this side as “dressing,” butter a 4-quart or 9x13 casserole dish and stuff the dressing into the dish, Cover with foil and bake at 350F for 45 minutes. Remove the foil and continue to bake for additional 20 to 25 minutes until the top bread crumbs are toasty. Recipe does not include eggs and sausage has been cooked so no danger in undercooking.

TIP: If baking as a casserole - place a turkey breast tenderloin on top of the dressing to add some good turkey flavor.

If your dinner table will be small this year, cut the recipe in half and include a turkey tenderloin for each of your guests. See photo below.

Servings:

8-10

Time:

Prep: 20-30 minutes

Cook: 90 minutes

Difficulty: