You may wonder why you are seeing a Thanksgiving recipe after the holiday. I am putting up this post for mostly selfish reasons. I would like to have a visual record about how to make the best Thanksgiving stuffing balls next year. My Facebook friend Drew is the mastermind behind these treats; he told me that you can actually create balls with your favorite stuffing recipe. He also provided his step by step directions below.
Gather your ingredients: Two thirds of a loaf of multi-grain bread, onions, peppers, mushrooms, slightly cooked chopped cranberries, celery, toasted walnuts, tarragon, Italian seasoning, sage or Bell’s seasoning, salt, pepper, celery seed, 3 eggs, half a stick of butter and enough milk to make it stick together. Drew made a note that celery seed is a key ingredient.
Bread: Lightly toast or bake in the oven a loaf of multi-grain bread. (I imagine Drew suggested Arnold’s multi-grain bread because of the hardiness of it. However, you can probably get away with a good loaf of white from a bakery.)
Saute in olive oil: onions, peppers, mushrooms and maybe some leeks until mostly soft.
Cut up the toast and put in the pan with the veggies. Then add some sliced celery, cranberries, dried diced apricots, and toasted walnuts. Season with tarragon, Italian seasoning, sage or Bell’s seasoning, salt and pepper, and celery seed. Mix well then add enough beaten egg and milk to hold it all together. Drew said that it is critical is to take your time adding the milk; do it in batches, then stir, wait several minutes and repeat. This allows the bread time to re-hydrate.
Heat oven to about 350 f and shape the stuffing into balls about the size of a pool ball or small orange. Here you can put them on parchment paper, greased aluminum foil or non-stick foil on a baking pan. Brush with melted butter or oil.
Bake until the middle seems done and the outside is brown and a little crispy. Drew baked his between 30 and 45 minutes. The temperature in the middle read about 180 to 200 F. If they seem cooked by squeezing gently but not brown enough just broil a few minutes. He also used spray olive oil before baking on the stuffing balls as well as his hands when forming them.
You will notice that there are not measurements of ingredients at this point. I am going to see if I can get them, but my guess is that Drew cooks like most chefs I know… they just feel amounts.
You don’t have to wait until next Thanksgiving to make these stuffing balls. They are certain to be a family favorite any time of the year. Thanks, Drew for allowing me to share this treat with readers.
If you make these, I would love to hear how they turned out for you. Be sure to leave a comment below with your thoughts as well as any additions or changes that you made.