Alright, I just had to post a picture of our turkey before it headed to our Thanksgiving table. Julie did an awesome job carving and arranging the platter, don't you think? But, now back to the reason for this post. Miss Linda, wife to Joel's cousin, Steve, has been after me for more than 5 years to give up my stuffing recipe.
She jokingly told me back then that she wanted me to write down the recipe before I went into surgery 5 years ago.........you know.........just in case I didn't make it out of surgery. Ha! It's not that I didn't want to share it, the problem was that each year I just made it up as I went along. Most of my recipes are from other women in my life or they come straight out of the hundred or so cookbooks that are in my collection. I love to share recipes and as much as I love to cook, I had never actually measured and written down this one and only original recipe of my very own.
How flattering that anyone would even want a copy! But then the kids started to ask how I made the stuffing and I realized that I needed to get serious and write something down so they could duplicate the taste they have come to know as our own stuffing. I think most cooks have had a taste for something their relatives consistently made as they were growing up and no matter how hard you tried, the recipe just never came out exactly as we remember it tasting when someone else made it. Well, I don't want my kids to feel that frustration, so this year I seriously measured and fine tuned the recipe so it would be easy to make. There's nothing fancy about it, kids and Linda, but it's what we love. Hope you enjoy it.
Our Family's Best Holiday Stuffing
2 tblsp. olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
4 stalks celery, diced
2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and diced
4 cups Pepperidge Farms Cornbread Stuffing
6 cups Pepperidge Farms Country Style Cubed Stuffing
1 cup raisins
2 cups coarse chopped pecans
1 tsp. dried thyme
3 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 stick butter
salt and pepper to taste
Saute' onion and celery in olive oil until onion is opaque. In large bowl place apples, both types of stuffing, raisins, pecans and thyme. Heat chicken broth and butter in microwave until butter is melted. Pour over the stuffing mixture and stir until evenly moist. Season to taste. Pour into 9" X 13" casserole dish and bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.
I couldn't resist taking a pic of my newest idea. There is
never enough room in the refrigerator when preparing holiday meals. I had made all my casseroles the day before Thanksgiving but how do you find enough room for them in the refrigerator? Duh! It occured to me that I could stack them by using my baking cooling racks in between the dishes which prevented the weight of the ones on top from crushing the ones down below. Hope this tip works as well for you as it did for me.
Still "stuffed",
Debbie
Ok, so while we were at the river we put the finishing touches on the new decking behind the Tin Can Cabin. The cabin had an existing 8' x 22' raised deck attached to the backside and we recently covered it with an insulated roof to give us a place to sit and be protected from rain and the sun.
This new ground level area was designed to get us up off the sandy/silt soil and provide comfortable seating around the fire pit. We connected the upper deck and the lower area with a boardwalk so we are high and dry when it rains. 
The is the "connecting" end by the stairs. This landing also serves as the forward end of our parking space for the cars. Next on the agenda: landscaping........my favorite!
