One of my favorite holiday dishes has always been my mom’s sausage and bread dressing. We made vast quantities of the stuffing at Thanksgiving, so it was easy to eat the leftovers for days. It was just the right blend of herbs and meat, a welcome change from the turkey. I usually smothered mine in gravy.
As an adult, this sausage and bread dressing is still one of my favorite holiday side dishes. It is a classic, and it doesn’t feel like Thanksgiving without it! I’ve never had this dressing when it when it was cooked inside of the turkey, though note I’m sure it increases the cooking time quite a bit.
Make It Ahead of Time
As well, this is something that I usually make ahead of time, often the day before Thanksgiving. Then I can just pop it into my second oven with the sweet potato casserole while the turkey (or turkey breast) cooks in my main oven.
Not Too Far Ahead
When I make it ahead of time, the earliest I make this dish is the day before serving it. Since it has eggs in it (which are then uncooked), the most you really should keep this uncooked in the refrigerator is 2-4 days per the Food Safety website.
Don’t Let it Dry Out
When making this dressing ahead of time I store it under a really well sealed saran wrap. I don’t want it to dry out, it really affects the texture and taste of the dish if it does. If your dressing dries out, you might want to try brushing a little milk on to the dry areas with a basting brush.
Adjust Your Cooking Time
As well, if you’re taking it out of the refrigerator and then putting it in the oven then it might need a little extra time in the oven brown up nicely. I needed about 5-10 extra minutes this Thanksgiving. Just keep an eye on the Sausage and Bread Dressing when it is in the oven.
A Thanksgiving classic! This bread and sausage dressing can be made the day before and then bakes in its own dish.
- 1 Loaf White Bread
- 2 Stalk Celery Diced
- 1 Medium Onion Diced
- 3 tsp Fresh Thyme
- 3 tsp Fresh Sage
- 2/3 Cup Fresh Parley
- 1 Pound Pork Sausage
- 4 Eggs
- 1/2 Cup Milk
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1/4 tsp Pepper
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Rip or cut up the bread into bite sized pieces, roughly the size of a big crouton. Set aside in a large bowl.
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Mix the thyme, sage and parsley together. If you are using dried rather than fresh spices, use 1/3 of the amount needed for fresh.
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Brown the sausage in a nonstick pan. Once done, remove the sausage and then cook the celery and onion in the sausage drippings until softened, about 10 minutes.
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Mix everything together in a bowl, adding in the bread slowly. You'll want the bread to be moistened but not wet. I usually have about 1/2 cup of bread leftover. Place into a baking dish. I refrigerate for up to 48 hours, covered with Saran Wrap to keep it moist. Bake at 350° until well browned.
Because this is cooking at home and not in a factory, there might be some variation between how I prepare this recipe and what you create at home. As such, all nutritional information are estimates and may vary.
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