Italian Stuffing Recipes

BEST EVER ITALIAN SAUSAGE STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Place the cubed bread on a baking sheet. Bake for 7-10 minutes, or until dried and toasted. They should be golden brown. Transfer the bread cubes to a very large bowl.
• Add 2 cups of broth (I used vegetable) to a large sauce pan. Heat on medium-low.
• Meanwhile, in a large skillet heat the oil over medium heat. Cook the sausages over medium heat for about 10 minutes, until browned and cooked through, breaking up the sausage with a fork while cooking. I didn't find ground sausage so I bought sausage in the casing and removed it from casing before browning it. Use ground sausage if you found it.
• In another skillet, add the other part of oil and butter (I used vegan butter sticks to keep it dairy-free)in medium heat.
• When it is heated up, add the onions, celery, parsley, sage, rosemary or thyme. Add just a dash of salt and pepper, if you like. Saute over medium heat for 10 minutes, until the vegetables are softened.
• Add the browned sausage, toasted bread to a large bowl. Next, add in the onion mixture.
• Add in one cup of the broth. With a large spoon, gently stir the ingredients together. Add in the whisked egg. Gradually add the remaining broth 1/4 cup at a time until the stuffing is wet. With each addition, gently stir and pat the stuffing ingredients together. Take care not to over mix it, you're just combining it all together. The goal is to have it wet, but not soaked and drippy. You may need the whole 2nd cup of broth and you may need less. You may even need a little bit more than a full 2 cups of broth.
• When the broth is soaked in and combined, spoon the stuffing into a 2qt. baking dish (or 9x12-inch baking dish); then cook for 30-40 minutes, or until it's heated through and golden brown on top. Check it at about 25 minutes and if it seems to be browning too much, cover with foil paper. I baked mine a full 40 minutes. Every oven is different. You may even need to bake it a few minutes longer to get that nice golden brown and have the inside fully heated through.
• Remove from the oven. Sprinkle with additional parsley, then serve.

STUFFING RECIPE

Steps:

• In a large pot, lightly boil 3 chicken breasts for about 3 hours (adding more water as needed)
• Toast the slices of bread in an oven at 390 degrees F. turning over after a few minutes. Place them on cookie sheets. This is what takes the most time.
• Saute the celery and onion in 3 Tablespoons of butter and 2 Tablespoons olive oil until tender.
• When chicken is done boiling, shred and set aside in a bowl (keep water for broth).
• Add the celery and onion to the chicken water along with 3-4 teaspoons of poultry seasoning (This is to taste too)
• Take the bread and dip in the broth and tear into bite size pieces. Put in a very large pan or bowl to mix later.
• Add the chicken and mix all together.
• Butter your baking pans and bake at 350 degrees F. for 45min. to an hour uncovered. Turn if needed.

SOUTHERN ITALIAN THANKSGIVING STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a deep 9x13 inch baking dish or roasting pan.
• Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and stir in the sausage. Cook and stir until the sausage is crumbly, evenly browned, and no longer pink. Drain and discard any excess grease. Place the browned sausage into a large mixing bowl.
• Meanwhile, heat the olive oil and pancetta in a large skillet over medium heat. Once the pancetta begins to brown, stir in the onions and celery, and cook until the onion softens and turns translucent, about 8 minutes. Stir in the garlic, and cook another 3 minutes until the aroma of the garlic mellows.
• Scrape the onion mixture into the bowl with the crumbled sausage. Add the French bread, cornbread, dried sage, poultry seasoning, salt, and pine nuts; stir well. Pour in the chicken broth and mozzarella cheese; stir until the chicken stock has been absorbed by the bread and the stuffing is evenly mixed. Pack the stuffing into the prepared baking dish, and dot the butter overtop. Cover with aluminum foil.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, then remove the foil, and continue baking until the top has turned golden brown, about 15 minutes more. Sprinkle with the fresh sage and shaved Parmesan cheese to serve.

GRAMMA CARUSO'S SICILIAN STUFFING

Steps:

• Heat oil in skillet, add onions and cook until slightly tender. Add all the ground meat and incorporate with fork. Add salt and pepper and garlic. Cook until half done, then add mushrooms, and continue cooking until meat is done. Do not drain.
• Put in large mixing bowl and add cooked rice. Toss, add bread crumbs, cheese, milk, and egg. Sorry guys, now ya gotta use your hands. Mix together, again add salt and pepper to taste. When fully mixed, add your chicken broth or water, more if you want a moist stuffing.
• There should be plenty to stuff your turkey, plus a full baking dish on the side. I put the baking dish in the last hour, top with 2 tablespoons butter and cover.

ITALIAN SAUSAGE STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and butter a shallow 3-quart baking dish. Melt 6 tablespoons butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook, stirring and breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, until lightly browned and no longer pink, about 6 minutes.
• Add the celery and onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the sage. Add the broth, 1 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper; bring to a simmer, then remove from the heat.
• Whisk the eggs in a large bowl. Add the parsley, bread cubes and sausage-broth mixture and stir until combined. Transfer the stuffing to the prepared baking dish. Cut the remaining 2 tablespoons butter into small cubes and scatter evenly over the stuffing. Cover with foil and bake 30 minutes, then uncover and bake until golden, 20 to 30 more minutes.

ITALIAN STUFFING WITH PEPPERS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Melt butter in medium skillet on medium heat. Add peppers and onions; cook 5 to 7 min. or until crisp-tender, stirring frequently. Remove from heat.
• Whisk eggs and chicken broth in large bowl until blended. Add stuffing mixes, cheese and cooked vegetables; mix lightly.
• Spoon into 13x9-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray
• Bake 30 min. or until heated through.

ITALIAN STUFFING WITH SAUSAGE AND PARMESAN

Steps:

• In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add onion, celery, bell peppers and garlic. Cook, stirring often, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add sausage and cook, breaking up meat with a spoon, until it loses its pink color, about 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in the basil, oregano, salt and crushed red pepper. Transfer to a large bowl.
• Stir in bread cubes and Parmesan. Stir in butter, wine and enough of the stock to moisten the stuffing, about 1 cup. If not being used to stuff the turkey, place in a buttered baking dish, cover and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove cover and bake an additional 10 minutes to form a crust.
• Note: If bread is very fresh, cut it into cubes, spread out on a baking sheet and let stand for several hours to air-dry.

ITALIAN SPINACH STUFFING

Steps:

• Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add onions and sauté, stirring, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium and add garlic, spinach and mushrooms and cook, stirring often, until well mixed and heated through, about 5 minutes. Season mixture to taste with salt and pepper; set aside.
• Finely mince chicken gizzards. (You can do this by hand or in a food processor, but be careful not to overprocess.) Season gizzards all over with salt. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add gizzards and sauté, stirring often, until cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain off any drippings, then stir gizzards into spinach mixture. Let cool to room temperature.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees. When spinach mixture is cool, add eggs, cheese, bread crumbs and parsley and stir until well combined. Transfer stuffing to a 3-quart casserole dish and bake, covered, 1 hour.

ITALIAN SAUSAGE AND BREAD STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle. Generously butter baking dish.
• Put bread in 2 shallow baking pans and bake, switching position of pans halfway through baking, until just dried out, about 10 minutes.
• Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers, then cook half of sausage, stirring and breaking it into small pieces, until golden brown, about 6 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a large bowl. Brown remaining sausage in remaining tablespoon oil, transferring to bowl.
• Pour off fat from skillet and wipe clean. Heat butter over medium heat until foam subsides, then cook onions, celery, garlic, and ½ teaspoon each of salt and pepper, stirring occasionally, until golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Add vegetables and bread to sausage.
• Whisk together eggs, ½ cup cream, turkey stock, cheese, and parsley, then stir into stuffing and cool completely, about 30 minutes. Reserve 5 cups stuffing to stuff turkey and spoon remainder into baking dish, then drizzle with remaining ¼ cup cream. Cover stuffing and chill.
• About 1 hour before stuffed turkey is finished roasting, bring dish of stuffing to room temperature. When turkey is done, increase oven temperature to 425°F and bake stuffing, covered tightly with foil, until hot throughout, about 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake until top is golden and crisp, about 15 minutes more.
• Cooks' Note: Bread can be toasted 3 days ahead and kept (once cool) in a sealed bag at room temperature. Stuffing can be prepared (but not baked) 4 hours before roasting turkey. If baking stuffing at the same time as potatoes, put stuffing in upper third of oven and potatoes in bottom third (allow extra time).

ITALIAN SAUSAGE AND PARMESAN CHEESE STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Spread bread cubes on large rimmed baking sheet. Bake until bread is dry, about 15 minutes. Transfer to large bowl and cool. Maintain oven temperature.
• Generously butter 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add sausages and sauté 5 minutes, breaking up with back of fork. Add chicken livers; sauté just until sausages and livers are cooked through, about 7 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer sausage mixture to bowl with bread cubes. Add 1 tablespoon oil to same skillet. Add onions and next 4 ingredients; sauté until onions and celery are tender but not brown, about 10 minutes. Add onion mixture to bread cubes. Stir in 3/4 cup Parmesan, currants, parsley, salt, and pepper. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)
• Mix eggs and broth into stuffing; transfer to baking dish. Cover dish with foil. Bake 40 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan and bake until top begins to brown, about 20 minutes.

ITALIAN STUFFED CHICKEN BREAST

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Combine 1 1/2 cup Italian cheese blend, garlic, basil, and oregano in a bowl. Combine Parmesan cheese and bread crumbs in a separate bowl.
• Cut one side of each chicken breast through the middle horizontally to within one-half inch of the other side. Open the two sides and spread them out like an open book. Lightly pound chicken to flatten. Fill each chicken breast with Italian cheese blend mixture and close like a book over the filling. Coat the outside of each chicken breast with egg; press bread crumb mixture over egg layer to coat each chicken breast. Arrange chicken breasts in a 9x13-inch baking dish.
• Bake in the preheated oven until chicken is no longer pink in the center and the juices run clear, about 45 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 165 degrees F (74 degrees C). Pour spaghetti sauce over cooked chicken; top with 1/4 cup Italian cheese blend. Bake until sauce is bubbling and cheese is melted, about 5 more minutes.

NORTHERN ITALIAN PASTA SHELL STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
• Place frozen spinach in strainer and run under hot water until thawed.
• Squeeze all the water out and place in large bowl.
• In large sauté pan,add in 1/2 olive oil, sauté onions & mushrooms, for at least 5 minutes or until tender.
• Add garlic and sauté for another minute.
• Remove from sauté pan and add ground round,oregano, Italian seasoning and 1 bay leaf, until browned.
• Drain meat and place in the same bowl with spinach.
• Stir in the cream cheese, onion mixture, meat and spinach until well combined.
• Add grated cheese, salt and pepper, to taste, and combine.
• Let mxiture cool and then add eggs; the filling can be made up to 1 day in advance and refrigerated until ready to use.
• Cook pasta shells, according to pkg directions.
• Drain and cool to the touch.
• Stuff the shells with the meat mixture.
• Place shells in large baking pan and cover with the tomato sauce.
• Cover with foil and bake for approximately 1 hour.
• Use some more more of the Parmiagiano-Reggiano and sprinkle over the top; place in oven again and cook for 1-3 minutes longer.
• Serve with a nice glass of red wine and a tossed green salad!

ITALIAN STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• In a large skillet, cook beef, onion and garlic over medium heat, crumbling beef, until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in water, tomato paste, bouillon and oregano. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes. , Meanwhile, combine egg, cottage cheese, 1 cup mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Stuff shells with cheese mixture., Preheat oven to 350°. Arrange shells in a greased 13x9-in. or 3-qt. baking dish. Pour meat sauce over shells. Cover; bake 30 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese. Bake until cheese is melted, about 5 minutes longer. Freeze option: After assembling, cover and freeze. To use, partially thaw in refrigerator overnight. Remove 30 minutes before baking. Preheat oven to 350°. Bake as directed, adding remaining 1 cup mozzarella after 30-40 minutes and increasing time as necessary for a thermometer inserted in center to read 165°.