Sausage Apple Chestnut Stuffing

    

    

People like to join tribes whenever possible; it's in our DNA, with modern versions including Cowboys v. everyone else, Yankees v. Redsox, CSI v. NCIS and the two guys from Twilight whom I am proud to say that I do not know their names.  When it comes to Thanksgiving, people break into mashed v. sweet potatoes and pumpkin v. pecan pie (I personally am a mashed/pumpkin guy).  When it comes to stuffing, I think people are less confrontational, but we do know what we like.  Options include cornbread, oyster and tradtional, etc.  Me, I'm a traditional stuffing person with my favorite being sausage apple stuffing.  I also like to throw in chestnuts for a seasonal touch.  There is nothing special about the recipes, just pick a good one and start a tradition.  Here is one I use from Epicurious.  Enjoy and do try to eat as much as you can on Thanksgiving Day!

    

Ingredients:

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 lb Italian sausage, sweet or spicy, skin removed

1 cup diced celery

1 cup diced onions

1 cup chopped chestnuts (from a jar is fine)

1 cup peeled cored granny smith apple

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp fresh parsely, chopped

1 bay leaf

8 cups 1-inch cubed french bread

1 cup whole milk

1 cup low-salt chicken broth

2 tbsp butter, melted

3 large eggs, beaten

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Heat oil in heavy, large skillet over medium heat.  Add sausage, breaking into pieces with a spoon, and saute until cooked through and brown, about 8 minutes.  Using slotted spoon, transfer sausage to large bowl.  Add celery and next 7 ingredients to skillet.  Saute over medium heat until vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes.  Discard bay leaf.  Return sausage to mixture.  Butter a 13x9x2 inch baking dish.  Add bread to sausage mixture.  Whisk milk, broth, and butter in bowl to blend.  Mix into stuffing, season stuffing with salt and pepper.  Mix in eggs, transfer to prepared dish and bake uncovered until cooked through and brown, about 50 minutes.