I love making the stuffing. For years I was using the bagged stuffing with a loaf of bread thrown in. But last week a friend bought me the most delicious buttery croussant that I ever ate. And it hit me......why not use some in my stuffing? A mixture of different breads would elevate the stuffing. Perhaps everyone has been doing this and I just didn't think of it or hear about it. So I used a mixture of croussants, sweet brioches and some lovery loaves of french bread. And then I bought two bags of ready made seasoned stuffings because of the seasonings they include. I also used a Costco chicken for the stock which I believe really made a big diffence. I did this the week before and froze the stock to lessen the labor on Thanksgiving day. Hope you enjoy this recipe because I certainly did!!
INGREDIENTS:
One Costco Chicken with breasts removed
4 Cups of Broth from chicken above
2 Eggs
3/4 Cup of Milk
1/2 small onion
5 Sprigs Fresh Parsley
4 Croissants
8 Brioche
2 Loaves French Bread
2 Bags Pepperidge Farm Stuffing Mix
2 1/2 Sticks Butter
One Bag Celery
One Large Sweet Onion
1/2 pound Mushrooms
Sage
Rosemary
Thyme
RECIPE:
Remove breasts of a fully cooked Costco Chicken. Use them for another day. Put the remained of the chicken in a large pot and add water about 3/4 of the way up to the chicken. Toss in the onion and fresh parsley. Costco seasons their chicken so I don't add anything other than the parsley. Add Salt & Pepper to taste. Bring to a boil and then simmer for about 2 hours. Let cool.
Put a large bowl under a strainer and empty the pot into the strainer. Put bowl of broth to the side. Go thru the chicken and remove all the meat, dice it in small pieces and put to the side. Throw the rest away. You can do this anytime before and freeze it if you want.
Preheat oven to 350°. Take all three breads and tear into pieces. Lay them flat on cookie sheets. Bake for 10 minutes and remove and put them in a very large bowl. Open and add the seasoned bagged stuffing.
Melt 1 1/2 Sticks of butter in a small saucepan.
Whisk eggs and milk together in a small bowl.
In a food processor, mince the celery, the large onion and mushroom. In a large skillet on medium, add one stick of butter. Slowly saute the processed veggies.
When they are soft, empty the skillet into the stuffing bowl. Add the minced chicken. Add about 2 cups of broth and half of the melted butter.
Mix well. Add the egg/milk mixture. Add the rest of the broth as needed. You don't want it too wet but just nice and moist. Try not to mash the larger bread pieces.
In a large foil pan, coat with butter. Add the stuffing to the pan. Drizzle the remaining butter on top and on the sides.
Bake on 375° for about 25 minutes covered with foil. Remove foil and bake an additional 20 minutes.
Enjoy and Happy Thanksgiving!!
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