November 23, 2015

Easy Thanksgiving Dressing

This Easy Thanksgiving Dressing is one I’ve tweaked based on my mother-in-law’s holiday recipe. Savory dressing with sausage, sweetened with dried apricots, with the crunch of pine nuts.

(Recipe modified with new pictures on 11/3/22.)

I always enjoy her dish so much, but my husband doesn’t care for dressing or stuffing. Because of that I came up with my own “easy” version. It’s not as good as the original from scratch homemade dish, but it’s a close second. And in my situation, I’ll take that.

Plus, this recipe is so easy to make, and because of the small additions, most folks will never guess that it’s not a “family” recipe.

Ingredients Needed to Make Easy Thanksgiving Dressing

(See the full recipe at the bottom of this post.)

bulk ground sausage
turkey stuffing mix
cornbread stuffing mix
water
butter
seasoning mix (from stuffing box)
sweet onion (optional)
diced celery (optional)
dried apricots
pine nuts (or slivered almonds)

A Note About Stuffing Mixes

I’ve noticed that some stuffing mixes offer seasoning packets, while others do not. If the latter is the case, simply ignore the addition of the seasoning ingredient. I like to use the combination of turkey and cornbread stuffing mixes, but you could also use chicken, sage, or even sourdough.

As for brands, I’ve used Stove Top (which is always good), as well as store brand versions. Personally, I’d look for sales, and if you can purchase Stove Top Stuffing Mix or Pepperidge Farm on a good sale, I’d go for that.

Instructions for Making This Recipe

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Gather your ingredients so that you have everything close at hand on the counter or table. Coat inside of baking dish with cooking spray.

Prepare the Ingredients

Using a knife and cutting board, chop the sweet onion and dice the celery. While these two vegetables are optional, I’ve found that they add much to the dressing. Chop the dried apricots. Set aside until ready to use.

Brown the bulk pork sausage in a medium skillet and set aside.

Whenever I have a recipe that uses pork sausage, I like to use a lower % fat sausage such as Oldham’s Country Sausage which comes in at 16% or William’s Country Sausage at 11%. The taste of either of these bulk pork sausages is good and there is very little fat that needs to be drained, if any.

Make the Dressing

In a large saucepan, combine seasoning packets with water and butter. Add in prepared onion, celery, and apricots. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes, covered.

As mentioned earlier, if seasoning packets are not an option, do not be concerned. The seasonings have simply been added to the stuffing mix. Continue on with the recipe, undaunted!

Remove from heat. Mix in bread crumbs, browned sausage, and pine nuts. Stir to moisten. Cover and let stand an additional 5 minutes.

If desired, you may substitute slivered almonds for the pine nuts.

Fluff with fork and spoon the dressing into the prepared baking dish. Place in preheated oven for 10-15 minutes to crisp up the dressing. Cover until ready to serve.

This recipe will serve 10-12 people. Serve with your next turkey dinner, or try making Molasses-Brined Roasted Chicken with Vegetables and use this dressing as a bed for the chicken.

See more Side Dishes Here. Browse more Holiday Recipes Here.