Scarborough Fair Stuffing

Stuffing or Dressing? In the north it’s stuffing. In the south, it’s dressing.

But what if you created the recipe in the north and are now making it in the south?

Another philosophical brain teaser.

But, everyone knows that you can take the girl out of Brooklyn, but you can’t take Brooklyn out of the girl.

Therefore, this is stuffing.

This is my signature stuffing, and not to brag, I think it’s the best bread stuffing ever.

Basically, it’s a theme and variations as they say in the music world. Add your favorite sautéed mushrooms. Add chestnuts, sautéd in a little butter, possibly glazed with a bit of liqueur. Add pistachios or pecans. Add sausage, vegan or otherwise. Dried fruits, such as apricots, work well. You get the idea. Have fun with your stuffing. Feel free to use other breads, such as a sturdy white bread or sourdough, or a combination of several. Just avoid a heavy whole wheat bread, because it won’t absorb the liquid well.

You can drop the orange flavor and use only Marsala wine instead. And switch out the morels—they’re heavenly, but we do what we can—for another dried mushroom, such as porcini. I promise it will still be fabulous.

Ingredients:

• 12-16 cup loaves brioche cut into ¾ inch cubes, toasted at 400° for 10 minutes, till golden

• 1 oz dried morel mushrooms or other dried mushrooms

• 1 ½ cups Madeira

• 1 stick butter or vegan butter substitute

• 2 cups sliced shiitake mushrooms (or other mushrooms), optional

• 2 cups finely chopped onion

• 2 cups finely chopped celery

• 2 cups apple, diced

• 2 cups roasted chestnuts (feel free to use packaged), optional

• 8 ounces apple sausage, chicken or vegetarian, diced

• 1 head garlic, finely chopped

• ½ cup parsley

• 1 ½ tablespoons chopped sage

• 1 ½ tablespoons chopped rosemary

• 1 ½ tablespoons chopped thyme

• 4 large eggs

• 4 cups chicken stock, or chicken-less stock

• or, 3 cups stock, 1 cup buttermilk

• ½ cup Gran Gala liqueur, optional, but very nice

• salt and pepper to taste

• any extras you’d like to use

Method:

Preheat the oven to 350°.

• Combine broth and ½ cup Madeira in a large saucepan.  Simmer 5 minutes.  Remove from heat and add morels.  Cover and soak about 15 minutes.  Drain and reserve mushrooms and broth. Cut large mushrooms in half, lengthwise.

• Melt half the butter and add the onions and celery. Sauté until the onions are soft and translucent, then add the diced sausage and continue to cook until everything begins to caramelize. Remove the contents of the pan to a bowl and reserve.

• Using the same skillet, melt the rest of the butter and sauté the shiitake mushrooms until the liquid evaporates, then add the chestnuts and continue to sauté until the mushrooms are golden. 

• Add the garlic and sauté for another minute.

• Add the morels and cook another minute. 

• Add the remaining Madeira and cook until the liquid evaporates. 

• Add the herbs and sauté for 1 minute. 

• Add the contents of the skillet to the bowl with the vegetables. 

• Lightly beat eggs and add to bowl.

• Add the brioche croutons and the reserved broth from the morels, and toss gently. 

• Add the Gran Gala and toss again.

• Spoon the stuffing into a greased baking dish and bake for 1 hour until the top is golden.