Starters, Sides & Spreads Classic Turkey Stuffing, Steven Schwartz

CLASSIC TURKEY STUFFING

Ingredients:

• 1 cup raisins • 1 1/2 cups Grand Marnier • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter • 2 cups chopped celery • 1 large yellow onion, chopped • 1 pound spicy breakfast sausage or Italian hot sausage, casing removed • 1 pound herb stuffing mix • 1 cup coarse chopped pecans • 4 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1 inch chunks • 2 cups chicken stock • 2 teaspoons thyme or 4 teaspoons fresh sage • Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Place raisins in a small saucepan and cover with 1 cup of Grand Marnier. 2. Bring to a boil then remove from the heat and set aside. In a large skillet, 3. melt 1 stick of butter. Add the celery and onion and sauté over medium heat for 10 minutes. 4. Transfer to a large mixing bowl. In the same skillet, cook the sausage, crumbling with a fork, until brown all over. Remove from heat and combine with the celery-onion mixture. 5. Add the stuffing mix to the vegetables and sausage. Stir in the raisins, liquid included. 6. Add pecans and apples and combine thoroughly. Melt the remaining stick of butter with the chicken stock in a saucepan. Pour over the stuffing along with the remaining 1/2 cup of Grand Marnier. Stir well, the stuffing should be moist all over. 7. Season with thyme or sage, salt and pepper. 8. Enough for an 18 to 20 pound turkey