Wild Mushroom Stuffing

Last Thanksgiving was the first year Bill and I had ever hosted Thanksgiving dinner, smoked a turkey and had 99% of the sides prepped and cooked in one place (our house).  Needless to say it’s a lot of work.  But when you have three different cooks in the kitchen, it’s a lot more work!   We were battling over who wanted to cook when, who needed what cutting board, all while trying to answer all the pressing questions like why is the oven set to 375 when I need it at 350 and where is that ingredient I can’t live without?

This year, I made the decision to be the executive chef who creates the menu, sources the ingredients and preps most things before the big day.  When it came time to pick the stuffing recipe, I was having a hard time making a decision.  I’ve always loved traditional stuffing recipes that are baked perfectly with crunchy edges.  However, when I stumbled upon this recipe, I knew it would be a winner with Bill, who loves all things mushrooms.  I would either have to pick around them, suck it up, or make two different stuffing dishes.  So I did the logical thing and made two different stuffing recipes….  Turns out the wild mushroom stuffing is the best stuffing ever, even if you are a weirdo like me who hates mushrooms.  I will admit that I came back for seconds and thirds of this dish and ate the mushrooms without hesitation.  Add this to your Thanksgiving menu and thank me later!

ingredients:

1 loaf ciabatta bread with crust, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 14-15 ounces)

10 tablespoons butter

1 pound wild mushrooms

2 shallots, finely sliced

2 stalks celery

2 bunches green onions, thinly sliced

3/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley

2 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano

2 tablespoon chopped fresh sage

2 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

3 large garlic clove, minced

2 teaspoon coarse kosher salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

3 large eggs

2 cups chicken broth

4 ounces freshly grated Parmesan cheese

directions:

If preparing stuffing ahead of time, cube bread 48 hours ahead of time and leave in a bowl loosely covered with a towel to dry out.

Preheat oven to 375°F. On a rimmed baking sheet, spread the cubes of bread out and bake until bread is dry. After about 15 minutes, remove baking sheet from the oven and allow the bread to cool.

Meanwhile, in a cast iron skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add mushrooms and shallots and cook until veggies are golden, about 7 minutes. Add the celery, green onions, various herbs, garlic, salt and pepper and sauté for an additional 4 minutes.

Combine bread cubes and vegetable mixture in a large bowl, tossing to combine.

Whisk the eggs and 3/4 cup broth in medium bowl. Add egg mixture to the bowl of bread and vegetables and toss to coat. Mix in Parmesan.

Coat baking dish with olive oil cooking spray and transfer mixture to baking dish. Add more broth if the mixture looks and feels dry. Cover with foil. Bake 30 minutes. Remove foil; bake until golden, about 30 minutes.