Turkey Sausage Stuffing
This non-soggy stuffing is made with turkey sausage, fennel, and apples to give it the BEST Thanksgiving flavor.
Ingredients
- 16 oz ground turkey sausage
- 1 loaf (16oz) sourdough bread cubed and dried
- 2 Tablespoons butter
- 1 cup fennel chopped
- 1 cup sweet onion chopped
- 2 Tablespoons fennel greens chopped
- 2 Tablespoons carrot tops (optional or fresh parsley) chopped
- 1 cup apple cider
Instructions
- Prepare bread first. You need it to be extremely dried out. Slice it into large cubes and place in a 300 degree oven F and cook for as long as it takes. Ours took about 30 minutes. Do not cook on a higher temperature because you just want to dry them out, not cook like croutons.
- Change oven temperature to 350 degrees F while you prepare the rest of the stuffing.
- Add turkey sausage to a non-stick pan, breaking it up into big-ish crumbles. Cook until done, about 4-6 minutes but be sure to use a meat thermometer to make sure it is cooked to 165 degrees F. Remove the cooked turkey sausage and set aside in a large mixing bowl.
- With the pan still on the stove over medium heat, add the butter and melt for a minute. Then, add the chopped onion and fennel. Cook until softened and fragrant, about 4-7 minutes.
- Add the cooked onion and fennel to the turkey sausage. Then, add the cooked bread cubes, fennel tops, carrot tops or fresh parsley and mix together. Then, add the apple cider and mix until well combined but be careful not to smoosh it too much. If you like a little softer stuffing, you can add more apple cider, 1 Tablespoon at a time.
- Pour mixture into a 9 x 13 glass baking pan. Place into the oven and bake for about 30 minutes or until browned on top and hot in the center. You can use a thermometer to ensure it's fully cooked in the middle.
- Serve immediately or leave in a slightly warm oven until ready to enjoy!
Notes
You can substitute pork sausage for the turkey sausage, just be sure to drain the fat as it can make your stuffing soggier than the turkey sausage.