Wild Mushroom Chestnut Sausage Dressing Recipes

MUSHROOM AND SAUSAGE STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Coat a large wide pot with olive oil and toss in the celery and onions. Season with salt and cook the veggies over medium-high heat until soft and very aromatic, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for an additional 1 to 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook for 3 to 4 minutes.
• Add the sausage and cook, breaking it into really small pieces with a metal spoon or spatula, until it's really brown and yummy, 12 to 15 minutes.
• Add the white wine and cook until it has evaporated by half. (The mix will be pretty soupy, and that's okay.)
• Combine the bread with the sausage mixture in a large bowl. Toss in the walnuts and sage and pour about half the chicken stock into the bowl. Using your hands, work to combine everything well -- really get in there and squish it up; it's fun! Add the remaining stock as needed to create a really moist mix. Taste and season with salt, if needed.
• Transfer the mixture to a 9-by-13-inch baking dish and cover with foil. Bake until the stuffing is hot all the way through, about 30 minutes, then remove the foil and bake to brown the top, another 15 minutes.

CHESTNUT-AND-SAUSAGE STUFFING

Steps:

• Let bread cubes stand on a baking sheet at room temperature 3 hours to dry.
• Lay each chestnut flat on a work surface, and cut an X in the pointed tip of shell with a paring or chestnut knife. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Boil chestnuts 2 minutes; remove pot from heat. Remove chestnuts with a slotted spoon; peel away shells. Quarter nutmeat; transfer to a large bowl. Add bread.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Split sausages; scrape meat into a large saute pan set over medium heat; crumble with a fork. Cook, stirring occasionally, until cooked through, about 7 minutes. Add oil; swirl pan. Add onions, celery, and garlic. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are soft, 15 to 17 minutes. Add to bread mixture.
• Add wine to pan. Scraping up any brown bits from bottom with a wooden spoon, cook over medium heat until wine is reduced by half. Add to bread mixture.
• Add stock to bread mixture; toss. Add thyme, sage, and parsley. Add the salt, and season with pepper. Stir in eggs.
• To bake stuffing: Place stuffing in a buttered 9-by-13-inch baking dish; cover with foil. Bake 30 minutes; remove foil. Bake until golden brown, about 25 minutes. To cook in turkey: Stuff as directed. Place remaining 5 cups stuffing in a buttered 8-inch square baking dish; bake as directed above.

WILD MUSHROOM, CHESTNUT & SAUSAGE DRESSING

Steps:

• In a bowl, combine the dried mushrooms and hot broth and soak for 1 hour. Drain the mushrooms, reserving the broth. Roughly chop the mushrooms, transfer to a large bowl and set aside. Preheat an oven to 375°F. Butter a baking dish or small Dutch oven. In a bowl, combine the bread cubes and olive oil and stir to coat. Spread the bread cubes out on a baking sheet and toast in the oven until golden and crunchy, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer to the bowl with the mushrooms. In a saute pan over medium heat, melt 3 Tbs. of the butter. Add the onion and celery and saute, stirring often, until soft and translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the chestnuts and cook for 2 minutes. Transfer the onion mixture to the bowl with the bread. Return the pan to medium heat and melt the remaining 1 Tbs. butter. Add the sausage and cook, stirring and crumbling with the back of a wooden spoon, until the sausage is cooked through, about 10 minutes. Add to the bowl with the bread and stir in the parsley and sage. In a saucepan over medium-high heat, warm the reserved broth. Add enough broth to the bread mixture so it is moist. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer the dressing to the prepared baking dish and bake until crispy and golden, about 1 hour, covering the dish with aluminum foil if the dressing gets too dark. Serves 8 to 10. Make-Ahead Tips: Assemble the dressing and place in the baking dish up to 1 day in advance, but do not bake. Cover and refrigerate until ready to bake. Remove from the refrigerator 1 hour before baking.

WILD MUSHROOM, CHESTNUT, AND SAUSAGE DRESSING

Steps:

• In a small saucepan over high heat, bring the broth to a boil. Remove from the heat, add the mushrooms and let stand for 1 hour. Drain the mushrooms, reserving the broth. Roughly chop the mushrooms, transfer to a large bowl and add the focaccia stuffing. Set aside.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter a small Dutch oven.
• In a saute pan over medium heat, melt 3 tbsp of the butter. Add the onion and celery and cook, stirring often, until soft and translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the chestnuts and cook for 2 minutes. Transfer to the bowl with the focaccia mixture.
• Return the pan to medium heat and mel the remaining 1 tablespoons butter. Add the sausage and cook, stirring and crumbling with the back of a wooden spoon until the sausage is cooked through, about 10 minutes. Add to the bowl with focaccia mixture and stir in the parsley and sage. In a saucepan over medium-high heat, wanr the reserve broth. Add enough of the broth to the focaccia mixture to make the dressing moist. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Transfer the dressing to the prepared Dutch oven and bake until crispy and golden on top, 45 minutes to 1 hour, covering the pan with the lid if the dressing gets too dark.

CHESTNUT AND WILD MUSHROOM STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Using chestnut knife or sharp paring knife, make large X on flat side of each chestnut through shell but not meat. Soak chestnuts in bowl of warm water to cover by 2 inches for 15 minutes, then drain well. Arrange chestnuts in 1 layer in shallow baking pan, then roast in middle of oven until shells curl away at X mark, about 15 minutes. Wearing protective gloves, peel away shells from chestnuts while still hot. In large pot boiling water, blanch chestnuts 2 minutes, then drain. Using kitchen towel, rub chestnuts to remove skins. Coarsely chop and reserve. Leave oven on.
• Butter 9- by 13-inch casserole dish with 1 tablespoon butter.
• On foil-lined baking sheet, toast bread in 350°F oven, tossing occasionally, until lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Place in large mixing bowl and set aside. Leave oven on.
• In heavy, large skillet over moderately high heat, melt 4 tablespoons butter. Add mushrooms and sauté, stirring, until golden brown, 7 to 8 minutes. Add another 2 tablespoons butter and heat until melted. Add onion and celery, and sauté until translucent, 6 to 7 minutes.
• Add mushroom mixture plus parsley and thyme to bread and gently stir to combine.
• In heavy, small pot over moderate heat bring chicken stock to gentle boil. Pour into bread mixture and gently toss to combine. Stir in egg, salt, and pepper. Transfer to casserole dish. The stuffing can be prepared up to this point and kept, covered and refrigerated, up to four hours. Bake until golden brown and heated through, about 30 minutes. Serve hot.