Herbed Bread Cracker And Leek Dressing Recipes

OLD-FASHIONED CRACKER DRESSING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly coat a baking dish with cooking spray.
• Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook and stir onion, celery, and 1 teaspoon salt in melted butter until onion begins to turn translucent, about 5 minutes. season with black pepper, sage, thyme, rosemary, and cayenne pepper; cook and stir about 1 minute.
• Remove skillet from heat and stir in chicken broth.
• Combine crushed crackers and onion mixture in a large bowl. Add egg and cream; mix until combined. Season with salt and black pepper.
• Spread cracker mixture evenly in a large baking dish and smooth the top.
• Bake in the preheated oven until top is golden brown, 40 to 45 minutes.

HERBED CRACKER STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Place bread cubes in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake, tossing occasionally, until dried but not browned, about 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, melt butter in a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add garlic, onions, and celery, and saute until just starting to brown, about 8 minutes. Add wine, and simmer 1 minute. Transfer mixture to a large bowl. Mix in bread cubes, crackers, herbs, and 1 teaspoon salt; season with pepper. Stir in broth, milk, and eggs until just incorporated.
• If not stuffing turkey, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spoon stuffing into a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Cover with parchment, then foil, and bake 45 minutes. Raise oven temperature to 425 degrees. Uncover stuffing, and bake until top is crisp and browned, about 5 minutes.

BUTTERED STUFFING WITH CELERY AND LEEKS

Steps:

• Using your hands, tear bread, crust and all, into 1 1/2- to 2-inch pieces. (Alternatively, you can cut the bread with a knife, but I prefer the way the craggy bits toast and soak up the goods.) Place chunks on a rimmed baking sheet, and let sit uncovered at room temperature for 12 to 24 hours. If you're short on time, you can toast the chunks in a 300-degree oven instead, tossing occasionally, until lightly crisped, but not browned, on the outside.
• Heat oven to 375 degrees. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, combine olive oil and 4 tablespoons butter. Once butter has melted, add the garlic and leeks. Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until leeks are bright green and totally softened, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Add celery, and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally until bright green and tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Add white wine, and cook until reduced by about three-quarters, 3 to 4 minutes. Add red-pepper flakes, if using, and remove from heat.
• Whisk together broth and eggs in a medium bowl. Place bread in a large bowl (you want a lot of room for mixing, so go big), and add the leek and celery mixture, parsley, chives and marjoram. Stir to coat so that everything is evenly distributed, trying not to totally crush the bread. Pour the egg mixture over everything and toss a few times. Let sit a minute or two and give another toss. Repeat twice until all the liquid has absorbed and evenly distributed to each and every piece of bread.
• Transfer mixture to a 2 1/2- to 3-quart baking dish (a 9-by-13 pan also works), making sure not to pack it too tightly. (You want to keep the bread in the stuffing as light as possible.) Dot the top with the remaining 4 tablespoons butter, making sure to pay extra attention to the corners, where the stuffing will get the crispiest.
• Cover with foil and bake until the stuffing is sizzling at the edges and completely cooked through, 25 to 30 minutes. If it's not yet time to serve, remove stuffing from oven and set aside. (If you are nearly ready to serve, proceed directly to the next step and continue without pausing.)
• When ready to serve, remove foil and increase temperature to 425 degrees. Bake stuffing until crispy, crunchy and impossibly golden brown on top, 20 to 25 minutes. Scatter with celery leaves, if using, and serve.

HERBED FLATBREAD

Steps:

• Place water in a medium bowl; sprinkle with yeast. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Stir in flour, oil, 2 teaspoons coarse salt, and the sugar. Stir until dough forms.
• Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface; knead with floured hands until smooth, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Let dough stand in a warm, draft-free place until it doubles in volume, about 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Divide dough into 16 equal pieces; cover with plastic wrap. Roll out 1 piece to roughly 4 by 10 inches on a lightly floured surface; transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush with egg wash; sprinkle with sea salt and herbs. Repeat with remaining dough, arranging 4 pieces per sheet.
• Bake, rotating sheets halfway through, until crisp and golden, 18 to 22 minutes. Let cool on sheets on a wire rack.

CRUNCHY BREAD DRESSING WITH BACON & LEEKS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a large sauté pan over medium heat, fry the bacon, stirring occasionally, until crispy and golden, 4-6 minutes. Meanwhile, grease the baking dish with 1 tablespoon butter.
• While the bacon is frying, prepare the vegetables: Cut the carrots into ¼-inch dice. Cut away and discard the dark green tops of the leeks and slice each in half. Rinse to remove sand and grit, then slice crosswise into ¼-inch slices. Set aside the carrots and leeks.
• Remove thyme leaves from stem by pinching the sprig at its tip and sliding your fingers down to the other end. Set aside. Trim the end of the garlic clove, then smash with the flat of your knife to remove the peel. Mince the garlic and set aside.
• When the bacon is brown and completely crisp, use slotted spoon to transfer to a paper towel-lined plate, leaving the fat in the pan. Set the bacon aside. Over medium heat, add 2 tablespoons butter to the bacon fat. Add carrots and leeks; use a wooden spatula to scrape up the browned bits, or "fond," on the bottom of the pan as you stir the vegetables. Continue to sauté until leeks are translucent, about 6 minutes. Add garlic, and sauté 1 more minute. Season to taste with salt and pepper (but remember that the cooked bacon will add more salt to the final dish).
• In a large stock pot or bowl, add the toasted bread cubes, followed by the leek-carrot mixture and the cooked bacon. Gently mix to combine. Add half of the stock and all of the thyme, then use your hands to toss and combine. Add remaining stock and continue to toss. If the bread still seems dry, add more stock as needed: the cubes should be moist but not falling apart. Finish by adding the chopped green onions and giving a final toss. Transfer dressing to the prepared baking dish. Bake until crispy and golden, 45-60 minutes.

HERBED SOFT BREADSTICKS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add the milk, egg, oil, sugar, salt, oregano, marjoram, thyme, garlic powder and 3 cups flour. Beat on medium speed until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a firm dough. , Turn onto a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a bowl coated with cooking spray, turning once to coat the top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. , Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface. Roll into a 16-in. x 12-in. rectangle. Cut into 6-in. x 1-in. strips. Place on baking sheets coated with cooking spray. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes. , Brush with egg; sprinkle with herb seasoning. Bake at 400° for 9-12 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to wire racks.

HERBED BREAD, CRACKER AND LEEK DRESSING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300°F. Spread bread on 2 large baking sheets. Bake until just dry but not brown, stirring occasionally, about 18 minutes. Transfer to very large bowl.
• Melt butter in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add leeks, onions and celery and sauté until tender but not brown, about 15 minutes. Transfer to bowl with bread. Mix in cracker crumbs, herbs, salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)
• Butter 2-quart baking dish. Mix milk into dressing. Reserve about 6 cups dressing for turkey. Mix 1/2 cup broth into remaining dressing and transfer to prepared baking dish. Cover with foil. Bake dressing in covered dish alongside turkey for 40 minutes. Uncover and bake until golden brown on top, about 20 minutes longer.

BASIC YANKEE BREAD STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.
• Place pork sausage in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain and set aside.
• Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Place the celery and onions in the saucepan, and slowly cook and stir until tender.
• Mix together the sausage, celery, onions, bread, sage, salt and pepper in a large bowl.
• Pour the eggs and chicken broth into the mixture. Use more broth if needed. The stuffing should be moist, not mushy.
• Press the mixture into the baking dish. Bake 1 hour in the preheated oven, or until the top is brown and crisp.

CRACKER DRESSING

Steps:

• In a skillet over medium heat, saute celery and onion in butter until tender. In a bowl, combine the egg, milk, parsley, sage, thyme, salt and pepper. Add the crackers and celery mixture; toss lightly. , Place in a greased 1-qt. baking dish. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until browned.