1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, seeded, and chopped into 1/4” cubes.
1 cup toasted walnuts, chopped
1 1/2 to 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons cold butter, cubed
Method:
Preheat oven to 325°F. Cut rolls into 1” cubes and spread onto baking sheets. Toast in oven, stirring and rotating baking sheets halfway through, for 20-25 minutes, until rolls dry out and start to turn golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool to room temperature. Increase oven temperature to 350°F.
While rolls toast, brown sausage in a large Dutch oven over medium heat, breaking up sausage with wooden spoon until crumbled. Once browned, remove sausage with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Add butter to pot. Once melted, use wooden spoon to scrape up browned sausage bits from pan.
Add leeks, onion, celery, herbs, pepper, and 1/2 teaspoon salt to melted butter. Cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes, until onions are translucent. Add garlic and apple and cook for 2 more minutes. Remove pot from heat and fold walnuts and cubed rolls into mixture, a handful at a time, until well-combined.
Slowly pour chicken broth over stuffing mixture, stirring after every 1/4 cup to make sure bread is absorbing stock evenly. Stop pouring broth when all bread is moistened but not soggy.
Spread stuffing mixture into large, greased casserole dish, and spread butter cubes evenly over top. Bake for 25-30 minutes uncovered, until top is golden brown.
Dos and Don’ts / Things to Note:
If time allows, cube bread 1-2 days before and leave out, uncovered. Then you can skip the first step of toasting the rolls.
As an alternative to Italian sausage, you can use bacon, chorizo, breakfast sausage or oysters.
Make it vegetarian by using mushrooms instead of meat.
To add even more flavor, substitute bacon fat or lard for the butter.
You can add other fresh herbs, like parsley, marjoram, oregano, if available.
Mix in beaten eggs for a denser stuffing, but that increases baking time and requires temperature monitoring.
Always toast nuts to maximize their flavor.
Substitute different nuts, like almonds or pecans, or add in cranberries and golden raisins.
Add other vegetables, like carrots, with the onions and leeks.
Oven temperature and cooking time can be adjusted if stuffing cooks alongside other dishes that require a different oven temperature.
