Midwestern Whole Wheat Dried Fruit Stuffing Recipes

WHOLE-WHEAT-BREAD-AND-APPLE STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Divide bread between 2 rimmed baking sheets and spread in a single layer. Bake, stirring a few times, until crisp and dry, about 40 minutes. Let cool. Break a piece open to make sure it's dried all the way through; if not, bake a few more minutes. Transfer to a large bowl.
• Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high. Add onions, fennel, and 2 teaspoons salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are soft and golden in places, 7 to 9 minutes. Add garlic, apple, rosemary, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; cook 1 minute. Pour in wine; cook until mostly evaporated, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Increase oven temperature to 375 degrees. Brush a 2 1/2-quart baking dish with butter. Add onion mixture to bowl with toasted bread; add parsley. Drizzle with stock, stirring to combine. Stir in eggs to evenly coat. Transfer to prepared baking dish. Top with buttered parchment; loosely wrap with foil. (If making ahead, refrigerate at this point until you're ready to bake.) Bake 20 minutes. Uncover; continue cooking until golden on top, about 20 minutes more. Serve, with more parsley sprinkled on top.

DRIED FRUIT STUFFING

Steps:

• Prepare stuffing mix according to package directions, adding dried fruits when adding contents of stuffing mix. Just before serving, stir in almonds.

HERB STUFFING WITH DRIED FRUIT

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter a shallow 3-quart baking dish. Cut or tear the bread into bite-size pieces. Divide between 2 rimmed baking sheets and spread into a single layer. Bake until slightly dry and crisp, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool completely.
• Meanwhile, melt 6 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the dried fruit, sage, thyme, apple, onion, celery, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the broth and parsley and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat and pour into a large bowl.
• Add the toasted bread to the onion mixture and toss until evenly moistened. Stir in the egg. Transfer to the prepared baking dish and evenly spread without packing the stuffing down too much. Bake until the top is crusty, about 40 minutes. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and drizzle over the top. Continue to bake until the top is crisp and golden, about 20 minutes more. Garnish with parsley and thyme.

MIDWEST STUFFING

Steps:

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MIDWESTERN WHOLE WHEAT DRIED FRUIT STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 250°F. Arrange bread slices on oven rack and bake until very dry but not brown, about 30 minutes. Transfer bread to very large bowl.
• Coarsely crumble bread. Mix in cherries, raisins, currants and prunes. Melt butter in heavy large skillet over medium-low heat. Add onions and sauté until golden and tender, about 15 minutes. Add to stuffing. Mix in thyme. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.) Mix in eggs.
• To bake stuffing in turkey:
• Mix 3/4 cup broth into stuffing. Fill main turkey cavity with stuffing. Mix enough broth into remaining stuffing to moisten (about 3/4 to 1 cup broth, depending on amount of remaining stuffing). Spoon remaining stuffing into buttered baking dish. Cover with buttered foil. Bake stuffing in dish alongside turkey until heated through, about 30 minutes. Uncover and bake until top is crisp, about 15 minutes.
• To bake all stuffing in pan:
• Preheat oven to 350°F.Butter 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking dish. Mix 2 3/4 cups broth into stuffing. Transfer to prepared dish. Cover with buttered foil and bake until heated through, about 45 minutes. Uncover and bake until top is crisp, about 15 minutes.

HOLIDAY FRUIT STUFFED ROASTED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 275 degrees F (135 degrees C). Spread the walnuts out onto a baking sheet and toast them for about 45 minutes, until the nuts start to brown and become fragrant. Watch the walnuts carefully, because they burn quickly. Set the walnuts aside.
• While the walnuts are roasting, rinse the chicken well with cold water, then pat dry inside and out with paper towels. Place the chicken into a small roasting pan, and sprinkle inside and outside with salt and pepper.
• Combine 2 tablespoons Italian dressing, 2 tablespoons of melted butter, 1 teaspoon orange peel, the lemon peel, thyme, and basil in a small bowl. Brush the chicken inside and out with the mixture.
• To make the stuffing, heat 2 tablespoons of butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the apple, pear, and pineapple chunks; cook and stir about 5 minutes, until the apple and pear are tender. Mix the cooked fruit mixture with the roasted walnuts, bread, prunes, grapes, 2 tablespoons Italian dressing, orange juice, apple cider, 1 teaspoon of orange zest, honey, and cinnamon in a large bowl and stir to combine.
• Increase oven temperature to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Spoon the stuffing into the chicken cavity, including the area under the neck skin. Secure the skin over the neck cavity with toothpicks, and fold the wings underneath the chicken. Tie the drumsticks together.
• Roast the chicken in the preheated oven for 1 hour, and untie the drumsticks. Return the chicken to the oven and continue roasting until no longer pink at the bone and the juices run clear, about 45 minutes to 1 hour additional roasting time. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, near the bone should read 180 degrees F (82 degrees C). Remove the chicken from the oven, cover with a doubled sheet of aluminum foil, and allow to rest in a warm area for 10 minutes before slicing.

DRIED FRUIT STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C).
• Slice bread and discard ends. Arrange bread slices on the rack of the preheated oven.
• Bake in the preheated oven until very dry, about 15 minutes.
• While the bread is baking, melt butter in a heavy, nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and saute until tender, about 10 minutes.
• Remove bread from the oven and crumble into coarse pieces in a large bowl. Add cherries, raisins, currants, and prunes; toss to combine. Mix in sauteed onions and thyme. Season with salt and pepper. Mix in eggs.
• Increase oven temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Coat a 12x16-inch piece of aluminum foil with cooking spray.
• Stir chicken broth into stuffing mixture and transfer to the prepared baking dish. Cover with the aluminum foil, sprayed-side down.
• Bake in the preheated oven until heated through, about 30 minutes. Remove aluminum foil and bake until top is golden, about 20 minutes more.

HEARTY WHOLE WHEAT STUFFING

Steps:

• Cut bread into cubes and set aside in a large bowl. (Bread crumbs need not be dried.).
• Peel onion and garlic cloves. Wash all vegetables and clean seeds from red pepper.
• Slice onions, garlic, celery, red pepper, and mushrooms, discarding the stems.
• Saute onions and celery in olive oil for several minutes, slowly stirring in half the spices (except for sage).
• Add garlic, red pepper, and remainder of spices, continuing to saute vegetables.
• Add mushrooms and continue to stir all vegetables as they cook. Add more olive oil as needed.
• Scramble eggs in a separate bowl. Remove vegetables from burner before onions brown.
• Add vegetables to bread cubes in bowl and stir. Add broth and continue to stir until moist.
• Add eggs and sage to stuffing mixture in bowl and mix until evenly distributed.
• Spray or wipe baking pans with olive oil. Place and distribute bread crumb mixture in pans.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake dressing mixture in hot oven for 20-30 minutes (uncovered).
• Remove stuffing from oven once it is crisp and lightly browned on top but still moist inside.
• Cover with foil and keep stuffing warm until it is ready to serve.

WHOLE-WHEAT STUFFING WITH TURKEY SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Arrange bread on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake until dried out, about 8 minutes. Let cool.
• Raise oven temperature to 350 degrees. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Brown sausage, breaking up meat with a wooden spatula, for 4 minutes. Stir in celery, garlic, and onion. Reduce heat to medium. Cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are soft, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool slightly.
• Combine bread, sausage-vegetable mixture, stock, egg, parsley, thyme, and sage in a large bowl. Transfer stuffing to an 11-inch oval baking dish. Cover with parchment-lined foil. Bake for 45 minutes. Turn on broiler. Uncover stuffing, and broil 9 to 10 inches from heat source until top is golden brown and crunchy, about 1 minute. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

MIDWEST SAUSAGE AND DRIED CHERRY STUFFING

Steps:

• In skillet, sauté the sausage, until brown.
• Drain grease and transfer to bread bowl.
• In same skillet, melt stick of butter, sauté all of the vegetables for 10 minutes until soft.
• Remove vegetables and place in bowl.
• Combine the sausage, vegetables, cherries, bread cubes and rest of ingredients EXCEPT the chicken broth.
• Add just enough chicken broth to moisten the bread mixture.
• You do not want it soaking wet.
• If packing the turkey, stuff the neck and cavity loosely with stuffing, folding the neck skin under and fastening with skewer.
• If not, lightly pack stuffing into a large, shallow baking dish.
• If you bake the stuffing inside the bird, roast the bird at 325 degrees for 15 minutes per pound or until the temperature of the bird reaches 170 degrees and the juices run clear when the thigh is pierced with fork.
• Let turkey rest at least 20 minutes before carving.
• If you bake in separate dish, drizzle the stuffing with alittle bit of stock.
• Cover and bake at 325° for 20 to 30 minutes.
• Uncover and back for an additional 10 minutes.