Black And White Stuffing

T day is coming up so i’m reposting this.
I’m continuing with the Holiday theme for a little longer. I’ve made this stuffing for a very long time and it seems to be a tradition now with our family. It’s basically just a bread stuffing, but using pumpernickle and Italian bread. Don’t worry if you don’t like the taste of pumpernickle the turkey kind of overrides all the other flavors. I buy it in the bakery department of our food store and if it’s not sliced, I have them slice it.

That way, you save one step and have nice uniform squares for your stuffing. I slice it again the long way, usually one half loaf at a time and then slice it the other way into 1″ cubes.

Put it all into a big bowl and let it dry out for 24 hrs or so. That way it won’t absorb too much liquid from the bird. My wife likes it baked outside of the bird, so add some chicken stock to the stuffing. I like it in the bird, you won’t need the stock. One loaf of both breads will do a 12 lb. or so bird.

Ingredients

1 Loaf Crusty Italian Bread chopped in 1″ cubes
1 Loaf Dark Pumpernickle chopped in 1″ cubes
1 large onion chopped
1  sweet apple peeled, cored and chopped
1 cup Celery stalks and leaves chopped
1/2 cup coarsely chopped mushrooms
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup melted margarine
1/2 Tsp. each Salt and Pepper
1 Tsp. crushed Sage
1 Tsp. crushed Thyme
1/4 cup white wine
1/2 cup chicken stock if baking the stuffing

Directions

I get out a large soup pot, kind of like a lobster pot or a giant bowl, to hold all of the bread. Chop the bread into 1″ cubes. Leave them sit at least over night (two is better) to dry out a little. The drier they are the less mushy the stuffing will be when done. Add the seasonings to the bread and mix.

Saute the vegetables in the margarine until softened. Add the apple and raisins (if you don’t like raisins use Crazins (sweetened cranberries, or dried apricots), the wine (and the stock if you’re not baking it in the bird). Mix it all up and stuff the bird (or a large baking dish, cover and cook for about an hour at the end of the bird).

Enjoy!