Apple, chestnut, and cornbread dressing
- 8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter;
- 2 medium onions, chopped (about 2 cups);
- 2 celery stalks, thinly sliced (about 1 cup);
- 1 sweet apple, cored and cut into 1⁄2-inch dice (about 1 cup);
- 1 tart apple, cored and cut into 1⁄2-inch dice (about 1 cup);
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme;
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage;
- 3 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley;
- 1 cup roasted or steamed chestnuts, crumbled;
- 4 cups 1-inch cubes Italian or French bread;
- 4 cups crumbled cornbread;
- 2 large eggs 11⁄2 to 2 cups turkey or chicken stock, warmed;
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste;
- 1⁄2 teaspoon ground black pepper, or to taste
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Generously butter a 9 × 13-inch baking dish.Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
- Add the onions and celery and a pinch of salt and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables begin to soften, about 10 minutes.
- Stir in the apples and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the thyme, sage, parsley, and chestnuts and cook, stirring often, for 2 minutes. Transfer into a large bowl. Stir in the bread and cornbread.
- Whisk the eggs in a small bowl until the whites and yolks are blended, then stir into the bread mixture.Stir in enough warm stock to make the dressing quite moist but not so much that there is standing liquid in the bottom of the bowl. Season with the salt and pepper.
- Spoon the stuffing into the prepared baking dish, cover with aluminum foil, and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake until the stuffing is hot and lightly browned on top, about 25 minutes longer. Serve warm.
- Make-ahead note: you can prepare the stuffing up through Step 4 up to 1 day ahead. Cover with foil and refrigerate. Bake just before serving.