17 November 2016

Everything's Coming Up Stuffing!


Today, Carole and Kat wanted us to talk about a recipe we love, and if it could be tied to Thanksgiving and/or a special memory, all the better.

Thanksgiving is a week from today - only a week!  Hooray, hooray, hooray, I love Thanksgiving so very much!  It's cozy, it's happy, it's relaxing, and it's food-related which to be honest all holidays are to me. But, on Thanksgiving, no one cares if things are food-centric which makes it even better. :-)

For the past week or so, I have already been thinking about STUFFING!  I don't care if you call it dressing instead of stuffing, but I DO care if you don't have it and you invite me for Thanksgiving ...

When we used to eat meat, I did enjoy the turkey, the leftover turkey for sandwiches, etc.  And I've never met a Thanksgiving side dish I couldn't make friends with, but for me the biggest and best thing in the meal has always been stuffing.  I think it was because when I was growing up, it was such a long and drawn-out process (still is, actually in our house), and it involved getting to spend time with my dad, driving him nuts helping.  He was always in charge of holiday meals, and they were always very involved, and I trailed him like a wanted criminal used to love being part of it.

And yes, I do know that you a) you can actually make stuffing any time of year, and b) you can even purchase already-made stuffing, some of it pretty decent.  But at Thanksgiving, I only want REAL stuffing!

As an adult, the thing I find amusing is that it was such a special and tasty thing to me, and what it was/is, the way we make it, is what other people have as the base for their stuffing.  No sausage, no chestnuts, no berries, no oysters, nothing but just:

Day old bread
Butter
Celery
Onions
Mushrooms (if affordable)
Seasonings - sage, thyme, rosemary, pepper, salt (or as we used to have at home, a can of McCormick's spices "Poultry Seasoning" though my dad would still add more of the other stuff)

There's no recipe per se,  But it's still my most favorite thing to eat on Thanksgiving.

And I *always* start thinking about it around Veteran's Day.  And then I can't wait.  :-)

9 comments:

Bonny said...

A fellow stuffing lover here! My grandmother made hers just like yours, and that's what I do. The first time I had Thanksgiving with my then-fiancee's family, they served stuffing with oysters and I wondered if I could marry him. I did, but since I'm the cook I make stuffing without oysters and other stuff. Enjoy your stuffing!

Araignee said...

I LOVE stuffing too. Me and two of the kids don't eat meat either so stuffing is the big deal on the table. I confess to using the bag stuff but I add tons of stuff to it. This year we are going to Daughter's so I am at the mercy of her stuffing. It better be good.

Vera said...

OMG - yes!! I love stuffing. Just the way you described it. My husband is from Virginia and it is always oyster stuffing. Yuck! He is just back from VA and brought oysters back...and plans to make oyster stuffing. I thought they were for appetizers which I would avoid...apparently they are for both. Help!!!

Tired Teacher said...

My family called it dressing, too, and we only had it twice or three times a year - always holidays. Mom's recipe is very similar to yours, but she added gizzards, which I can take or leave.

A lot of my childhood holiday memories are connected with the food that was served every year for the family dinners.

Anonymous said...

That's exactly how we make OUR stuffing. Best stuffing in the whole wide world.

I hope you have a wonderful holiday. Steve and I are really looking forward to stinking up the whole complex with roasting goodness!

Caffeine Girl said...

I like plain stuffing, too. But my favorite is sweet-potato casserole with brown sugar and pecans. I know I could make it at other times, but then it would not be so special.

AsKatKnits said...

We called it dressing, but I married into a stuffing family and it was worse than that - it was Stovetop Stuffing! You can only imagine my tears on that first Thanksgiving. I was so homesick and I wanted dressing so bad!

Nance said...

We call it dressing if it is OUTSIDE the turkey and stuffing if it is INSIDE the turkey. Because, you know, family full of English Teachers.

Anyway.

Ours is basically the same as yours. Then, one year, my sister got creative and found a recipe with sausage and chestnuts and made that. It was really good. Then came the year that I decided NO MORE TRAVELLING ALL OVER CREATION FOR HOLIDAYS, and I started making my very own. I add cornbread, no sausage and nuts, and I use herbs from my own garden. And don't put any inside the turkey. We're all big fans.

Wanderingcatstudio said...

My Dad is in charge of the stuffing too - and his recipe is almost bang on to yours! (And it's the best stuffing EVER).
They only thing I do differently when I make it, is throw some pecans and dried cranberries in it. It doesn't need it, but I like to

Dave's aunt makes a stuffing with sausage in it. He loves it - especially since I pick all the sausage bits out of mine and put them on his plate!