To make this stuffing, you’ll need to first dry the bread. Spread the bread cubes out onto 2 large baking sheets and dry in a 300°F (150°C) oven for 30 to 60 minutes. Let the bread cool before using in the stuffing.–Editors at America’s Test Kitchen
LC Storied Stuffing Note
This rich stuffing recipe turns out the stuffing of our dreams, a turkey accompaniment that’s just like we’d always imagined in our Rockwell-ian musings about what Thanksgiving could be like. We suspect it has quite a lot to do with the pound of bacon….
Bread Stuffing with Bacon, Apples, Sage, and Caramelized Onions Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound bacon, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch strips
- 6 medium (about 7 cups) onions, peeled and thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 (about 2 cups) Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2-inch dice
- 1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves, finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons minced fresh sage leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3 pounds (about 12 cups) high-quality white sandwich bread, cut into 3/4-inch cubes
- 1 cup turkey or chicken stock, or low-sodium chicken broth
- 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
Directions
- 1. Cook the bacon in a large skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp and browned, about 12 minutes. Remove the bacon from the pan with a slotted spoon and transfer it to paper towels to drain. Pour off and discard all but 3 tablespoons of the bacon drippings.
- 2. Increase the heat under the skillet to medium-high and add the onions and 1/4 teaspoon of the salt. Cook until the onions are golden in color, making sure to occasionally stir and scrape the sides and bottom of the pan, about 20 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium and continue to cook, stirring more often to prevent burning, until the onions are deep golden brown, another 5 minutes. Add the apples and continue to cook another 5 minutes.
- 3. Transfer the contents of the pan to a large bowl and add the parsley, sage, remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt, and the pepper and mix to combine. Add the bread and gently stir again.
- 4. Whisk the broth and eggs together in a small bowl. Pour the mixture over the bread, add the bacon, and gently toss to distribute the ingredients. Once the stuffing is evenly coated, stuff it in your favorite roast turkey recipe or place it in a casserole dish, cover, and bake while the turkey is in the oven. If you prefer a crisp topping, uncover the stuffing during the last 45 minutes or so of baking.
Hungry for more? Chow down on these:
- Sausage, Fig & Cranberry Stuffing from Brown Eyed Baker
- Chanterelle Stuffing from Hunter Angler Gardener Cook
- Sourdough Dressing with Sausage and Prunes from Leite's Culinaria
- Herbed Bread and Celery Stuffing from Leite's Culinaria
Bread Stuffing with Bacon, Apples, Sage, and Caramelized Onions Recipe © 2009 Editors at America's Test Kitchen. Photo © 2009 Carl Tremblay. All rights reserved.
I made this recipe (originally from Cooks Illustrated) a few years ago, and it is definitely one of the best stuffings I’ve ever made. How can you go wrong with carmelized onions and a pound of bacon!
We were guests at friends’ for Thanksgiving, so we didn’t have to do any of the heavy-lifting cooking. I was asked to bring a stuffing (a dressing, really, since it had to be cooked outside of the turkey), and I chose this one. It was a hit. My only problem was proportion. The recipe says to use three pounds of bread, which I did. But I cut up all three loaves and ended up with 19 cups of cubes. So I used just 12, as the recipe states. Different breads, even from the same manufacturer (I used Pepperidge Farms), can weigh the same but have different volume. The supermarket had only two sandwich loaves left, so for the third loaf I reached for a white bread, which was almost 1/3 smaller than the other two. Be forewarned: Use only 12 cups of cubes for maximum flavor.