Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 350°Prepare a 9x13 baking dish (or two smaller dishes) by spraying with non-stick spray.Slice your bread into small cubes. Place on a baking sheet and toast at 350° for 15-20 minutes or until bread is crouton texture. You can also leave bread out to become stale overnight on a baking sheet tented with foil.In a large pan, melt butter and add onions, garlic, celery and mushrooms. Sprinkle with a good pinch of kosher salt. At least 1 teaspoon. Sautee 10-12 minutes or until softened. Add fresh herbs (dried and ground may be substituted in 1/2 teaspoon of each). Add 1 cup of chicken broth and (optional) 1 tablespoon beef au jus or beef gravy powder. In another pan, brown sausage and set aside.Add bread crumbs to a large bowl and toss with veggie mixture. Add ground sausage. In a small bowl, beat 2 eggs into the remaining 1 1/2 cups chicken broth. Pour over bread mixture. Fold quickly and carefully until all bread cubes are covered.Pour stuffing into a 9x13 pan or two smaller baking dishes. Bake for 55-60 minutes or until center temperature reads 160°. Tent the stuffing if the bread is becoming too dark on top. This dish can be doubled to serve a larger crowd, but you may need to bake 10-15 extra minutes.
Optional Ingredients
- The mushrooms and sausage are totally optional in this dish. I really love the way they dress up the stuffing! If you do not have access to fresh herbs, you can use 1/2 teaspoon of each in ground and dried. The beef au jus or gravy powder is optional as well, but really adds a great depth of flavor!
