Homemade Cornbread Stuffing ❄︎ 7th Baking Day of Christmas 2017

One of the many reasons I like the holiday season so much is because that’s when people pull out all the stops: the once-a-year turkey, the special holiday ham, Aunt So-and-So’s famous pumpkin pie… In my family, the much beloved and anticipated dish is this homemade cornbread stuffing.

Yesterday I showed you how to make my family’s favorite cornbread. Today I’m sharing how to turn that cornbread into a savory side dish. Let’s get cooking!

First, you’ll need to make cornbread. Here’s a quick recap from yesterday’s post; you can find the full recipe HERE.

How to Make Homemade Cornbread

Step 1

Combine flour, yellow corn meal, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.

Step 2

Create a well by pushing the dry ingredients to the edges of the bowl. Pour homemade buttermilk, vegetable oil and an egg into the center.

Step 3

Mix until combined. It’s okay if there are a few lumps; just make sure the flour in fully incorporated.

Step 4

Pour batter into greased and floured 8″ square pan. Bake at 400 degrees F for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow to cool before handling.

While the cornbread is baking, put a pot of water on the stove and make a simple chicken stock.

I use boneless, skinless chicken thighs in the stock because I don’t want to desecrate the turkey before the big feast. (You could skip this step and shred a cooked turkey leg or rotisserie chicken instead.) I also include an onion, a few cloves of garlic, celery and a few seasonings. Let the stock boil until the chicken is fully cooked.

Once the chicken is done, remove and shred with two forks. Strain and reserve the stock liquid for a later step; discard the solids.

When the cornbread is done and cooling, throw a few tablespoons of butter into a pan and sauté diced celery and onions until soft. Season them with salt, pepper and poultry seasoning.

Poultry seasoning is my shortcut for the triad of herbs: sage, rosemary and thyme. It’s got a few others thrown in there for good measure, too. My mom introduced me to it the last time we made cornbread stuffing together and it’s been a keeper ever since.

Once the cornbread is cool enough to handle, break it up into a large bowl. Add the sautéed celery and onions. Dice boiled eggs and add them, too. Lastly, add the shredded chicken and a bit of the stock. Season with salt, pepper and poultry seasoning to taste.

Now, you can combine all of this with a spoon, but I find it far more effective to just get in there with clean hands. Mix until well combined, adding stock liquid little by little as needed. You want the stuffing to be moist, but not wet.

Transfer into a baking pan and bake covered for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake until golden and crisp on top. Hello, honey!

I usually do all the prep the day before and put the stuffing in the oven for its final bake the day of. It’s a shame we only have it twice a year — it is so good.

So what are you planning for your holiday menu? Are you a stuffing fan? Do you have some must-have dishes? I’d love to hear about them in the comments below!  — v.

The 12 Baking Days of Christmas 2017

Day 1 ❄︎︎ Gingerbread Whoopie Pies
Day 2 ❄︎ Skillet Sugar Cookies
Day 3 ❄︎ Cranberry Orange Scones
Day 4 ❄︎ White Chocolate Bark: Two Ways
Day 5 ❄︎ Rudy’s Gingerbread Loaf
Day 6 ❄︎ Homemade Cornbread
Day 7 ❄︎ Homemade Cornbread Stuffing
Day 8 ❄︎ Red Velvet Cookies
Day 9 ❄︎ Red & White Marbled Cupcakes
Day 10 ❄︎ Mini Caramel Apple Pies
Day 11 ❄︎ Make-Ahead Breakfast Casserole
Day 12 ❄︎ Christmas Checkerboard Cake

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Homemade Cornbread Stuffing

December 7, 2017

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By: v.

Ingredients

• CHICKEN STOCK
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 1 small onion, sliced
• 1-2 cloves of garlic, smashed
• 2-3 stalks of celery, diced
• 1/2 tsp each of kosher salt, ground black pepper and dried thyme leaves
• 2 cups of water
• 
  STUFFING
• 3 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 2-3 stalks of celery, diced
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1/2 Tbsp poultry seasoning
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• 2 boiled eggs, diced
• additional kosher salt, ground black pepper and poultry seasoning to taste

Directions

• Step 1 Make cornbread according to these instructions.
• Step 2 Combine all ingredients for the chicken stock in a medium pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until chicken thighs are fully cooked. Remove chicken and shred with two forks. Strain and reserve stock liquid. Discard solids.
• Step 3 In a large frying pan, melt butter on medium-high heat and sauté onion and celery until tender, about 7-8 minutes. Season with salt, pepper and poultry seasoning.
• Step 4 In a large bowl, break cooled cornbread into pieces. Add sautéed onion and celery, diced boiled eggs, shredded chicken and 1 cup of the stock liquid. Mix until well combined, adding more stock liquid as needed. The stuffing should be moist, but not wet. Season with additional salt, pepper and poultry season to taste.
• Step 5 Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Transfer stuffing to 8″ square baking pan and cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 30 minutes, remove foil and continue baking until golden and crisp on the top, about 15 minutes more.