Sourdough Bread Stuffing

Thanksgiving: OK,  not one of my favorite holidays... but there are some great recipes out there, and a person gets to show off in the kitchen.

When I was little we always had turkey, stuffing, peas, mashed potatoes, hot yeasty rolls, sweet potatoes, cranberry relish,  and a choice of pie... mincemeat, pumpkim and pecan. (I was really glad when we stopped having mincemeat.)

There was always way to much food and football.  When I got older, we girls would go to the movies after the dishes were done and leave  the footballers to argue over who was going to win.

By the way,  the stuffing was always cornbread based. When I got older, and started to discover new tastes, I discovered sourdough bread stuffing... OMG... it was so good. ,it was hard to go back to cornbread.

This particular stuffing had a ton of butter, ribbons of slices onion and celery, and the aroma of  a dry Riesling, becauce that is that the turkey was basted with.

Well, I found this little gem the Food Network. don't you just love the cooking shows at the holidays?

Enjoy

Ingredients

1-pound loaf sourdough bread
8 tablespoons butter
10 ounces cremini mushrooms, sliced 1/2-inch thick in both directions
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 to 4 stalks celery with leaves, halved lengthwise and sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
About 10 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves stripped from the stems
10 to 12 fresh sage leaves, chopped
3 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
3 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley leaves

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 2-quart baking dish and set aside.

Cut or tear the bread into 1-inch cubes and spread it evenly on 2 baking sheets. Toast the bread in the oven until completely dry and beginning to crisp and brown, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a large mixing bowl.

Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and a few pinches of salt and saute, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 6 to 8 minutes. Add celery, onion, 2 tablespoons butter, and thyme. Once the butter has melted, cook, stirring frequently, until the vegetables have softened, about 5 minutes. Add sage and remaining 4 tablespoons butter. Add chicken broth to skillet and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Transfer toasted bread cubes to a large bowl. Pour the chicken broth mixture over the bread cubes and toss to combine until the bread cubes absorb the liquid. Pour the mixture into the greased baking dish, and sprinkle with parsley. Bake in the center of the oven until heated through and the top is golden brown, about 40 minutes. Remove the stuffing from the oven and allow to cool about 15 minutes before serving.