Perfect Stuffing

Photo: flickr user lorelei

Ingredients

1/2 pound sausage crumbled

2 onions minced

2 cups finely-chopped celery

1/4 cup finely-minced fresh sage

1/4 cup finely-minced fresh thyme

1/2 cup butter - (1 stick0

2 ounces bag herb stuffing mix - (6 ea)

2 green apples diced

1 1/2 cups dried cranberries

1 can water chestnuts - (8 oz) drained, diced

1 cup pecan pieces

2 cups prunes cut into quarters

2 teaspoons salt

Freshly-ground black pepper to taste

4 eggs lightly beaten

3 cups chicken broth

Preparation

Brown sausage, onions, celery, sage and thyme in butter over medium heat.

Place stuffing mix in large bowl and add sausage mixture, apples, cranberries, water chestnuts, pecan pieces, prunes, salt and pepper to taste. Mix well. Add eggs, then broth, a little at a time, mixing constantly until bread is moistened.

Stuff in turkey or bake at 375 degrees in 13- by 9-inch baking dish tightly covered with foil, 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake another 30 minutes.

This recipe yields 16 cups.

Comments: Full of apples, cranberries, water chestnuts, prunes, pecans and herbs, this lush and colorful stuffing was our tasters' favorite. It would also be good with pork and duck.