For Turkey Day, the star doesn’t have to be the bird. In many households, turkey may be the standard, but the star is the dressing. Yes, the dressing (not the stuffing). More specifically, Southern cornbread dressing baked in a pan, not inside the turkey.
Cornbread dressing is distinctly rooted in Southern culinary tradition, but you’ll find it plays well in other regions of the country. We at HoneyColony think a little nod to this Southern delicacy is a great idea this season, and ever the purists, we urge you to use certified non-GMO, organic ingredients to make our star recipe below shine all the more. Just show it a little love as you prepare it.
And while we’re at it, we’ve included the world’s easiest homemade cranberry sauce recipe. So, lick your lips, wash your hands and let’s get cooking.
Fourth-Generation Southern Cornbread Dressing
- Approximately 26 oz. yellow cornbread mix
- 2.5 cups herb seasoned stuffing
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 3 ribs of celery, finely chopped
- 2 Honeycrisp apples, grated
- 6 eggs, beaten
- Approx. 70 oz. chicken broth
- ½ teaspoon poultry seasoning
- 1 tablespoon cracked black pepper
- 2-3 good pinches of sea salt
- (2) 13 x 9 in. aluminum lasagna-type pans
Directions:
Bake the cornbread per directions on the mix package. Hint: you can bake it all at once in a 13 x 9 pan. While this is going on, grate apples, chop celery and onions. Stew the onions, apples and celery in about 8 oz. of chicken broth until soft. That usually means on medium low for about 10 minutes. One of the best things about cornbread dressing is its smooth texture, so make sure the stew is soft.
After the cornbread has cooled, crumble it finely in a large mixing bowl. Add stuffing mix, onion mixture, eggs and seasonings. Slowly stir in the remaining chicken broth, noting specifically that the dressing mix should have a rather soupy or batter-type consistency. If it looks like a little liquid is just starting to separate on top from the dressing part, that’s probably OK; if there’s a little chicken broth left over, don’t worry about it.
Pour evenly into the two pans. Bake at 350 degrees for about an hour, but keep an eye on it. You might need to cook it 10 to 20 minutes longer if it is too soft. The goal here, though, is that you want it MOIST. Oven temperatures vary, so don’t let it dry out. If the dressing browns too much on top, cover it with foil for the last few minutes of cooking. Then just gorge on it.
World’s Easiest Homemade Cranberry Sauce
- 1 package cranberries (12 to 16 oz.)
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup dark brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Again, this is elegantly simple … and don’t forget, use organics. Boil the water and dissolve the sugar in it. Add the cranberries and return to a boil. Once at a boil, reduce heat to medium low or low, and simmer until the mixture thickens and the cranberries burst open, probably 15 to 20 minutes. Stir occasionally, and add the lemon juice in the last 5 minutes or so of cooking. Just keep stirring until it reaches the nice thicker consistency you’d like.
Serve as you prefer. Some like it warm, some like it out of the refrigerator, but everyone likes it with the dressing. Either way, it’s a treat, and you’ll be a simple gourmet.
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- Tags: cornbread, healthy, recipe, thanksgiving
