Cornbread and Sausage Stuffing

Countdown to Thanksgiving has begun!! Time to stuff ourselves with yummy foods and spending time with our loved ones. This year would be the first year that we won't be having a turkey dinner on Thanksgiving day. My mom dropped the news on us last week and we were like "whaaa?? no turkey?!?! but.. but.. we always have turkey every Thanksgiving!!" Yeah.. long story but we would be eating at a restaurant instead on Thanksgiving day (sniff.. like the Santa Clause movie?). But I took matters in my own hands and decided to throw together a turkey dinner for my family this past Saturday to at least have some turkey even though it wouldn't be on the day of. Good enough right?? Also, this was my first time ever hosting a Thanksgiving dinner for the family. So I wanted to make sure I planned a full dinner which in the end came out to be way too much food. hahaha.. That's me! I always want to make sure you get plenty of food than not enough. That would be my fear!! 0_0  

If you follow me on Instagram, you would've seen my dinner plate. haha...

So during my prep for the turkey dinner, I wanted to share my recipe of cornbread and sausage stuffing that I make every year. It's really simple and easy to make! I wouldn't show you guys if it wasn't. ;)

Let's get started..

I cheated.. I use cornbread mix. It saves me time! I usually use Marie Callender's but this time I tried Jiffy mix which Bon Appetit magazine recommended for their cornbread stuffing too! ;)

I make the cornbread a day ahead!! Because the cornbread will be more dense and easier to make the stuffing with. FYI - I used 2 boxes of the Jiffy mix. But it all depends on how much you want to make.

I highly recommend doing this the day before you plan on serving the stuffing. 

On the day of, cut the cornbread into 3/4 inch cubes. 

Finely chop three stalks of celery and one medium sweet onion.

In a medium pan, cook 1lb of pork sausage or italian sausage (which is what I used this time) until browned. 

Once it's cooked, put the sausage into a large mixing bowl.

Add the chopped celery and onion into the pan. Also add 1/4 cup of water. Cook for 10 mins. 

The veggies will soften. Season with salt and pepper.

Once cooked, add the veggies to the sausage in the large mixing bowl.

 In the meantime....

Simmer 1 cup of low-sodium chicken broth..

Finely chop fresh sage.. I chopped four leaves.

Lightly beat three large eggs..

Add the egg and sage into the large mixing bowl with the cooked veggies and sausage.

Then add the cubed cornbread into the mixture. 

Also add 1/2 cup of the chicken broth (should be moist not wet) and lightly toss and mix. 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Add the cornbread/sausage mixture into a baking dish.

Bake for 1 hour.

It is ready to be served at the Thanksgiving table! ^__^

Serving size: 6-8

You can always make this ahead of time during the day of and then cover/refrigerate until ready to be baked.

And it's your choice to add the pre-baked stuffing into the turkey! But I chose to do it on the side. 

Our table full of delicious dishes - green bean casserole, cole slaw, mac&cheese, roasted veggies, gravy made from the turkey drippings, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and lingonberry sauce including the turkey (post-carved by my dad!). Proud that I was able to get the turkey nice and juicy! Go me! hahaha.. 

Hope you guys enjoy! And let me know, what are some of your favorite dishes for Thanksgiving?