Cornbread & Sausage Stuffing

From EatingWell: November/December 2007 — Subscribe to EatingWell Magazine Today!

Cornbread stuffing, a Southern favorite, is a nice change from more traditional white-bread stuffing. Our delectable recipe uses Italian turkey sausage, rather than pork, and omits all the butter and cream to cut the fat by two-thirds. The stuffing is lower in sodium as well and so easy to make that it's sure to become a favorite side year-round.

READER'S COMMENT:

"I used hot sausage instead of sweet because we like a kick and it is fabulous! I also made four 8.5oz boxes of Jiffy Corn Muffin mix and baked them in a 10 x 15 pan which yielded 12 cups of cornbread. I would guess 3 "pound cake" style...

12 servings, scant 1 cup each

Active Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

Nutrition Profile

Low calorie | Low cholesterol | Healthy weight |

View Our Nutrition Guidelines »

Ingredients

1 pound sweet Italian turkey sausage, (about 4 links), casings removed
2 cups finely chopped onion
1 1/2 cups finely chopped celery
1/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 pounds prepared cornbread, cut into 3/4-inch cubes (about 12 cups)
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
1 1/2-3 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth

Preparation

Preheat oven to 325°F. Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.
Cook sausage in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, stirring and breaking up with a wooden spoon, until browned, about 10 minutes. Add onion and celery; cover, reduce heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 10 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Add cornbread, parsley and sage.
Bring broth to a simmer in a small saucepan. Pour 1 cup over the stuffing mixture and toss gently (the cornbread will break into smaller pieces). Add as much of the remaining broth as needed, 1/2 cup at a time, until the stuffing feels moist but not wet. Spoon the stuffing into the prepared pan and cover with foil.
Bake the stuffing until thoroughly heated, about 25 minutes. Serve warm.

Tips & Notes

Make Ahead Tip: Prepare through Step 3, cover and refrigerate for up to 1 day. Bake at 350Â°F until hot, about 30 minutes.

Nutrition

Per serving: 242 calories; 8 g fat (3 g sat, 0 g mono); 29 mg cholesterol; 34 g carbohydrates; 10 g protein; 2 g fiber; 692 mg sodium; 79 mg potassium.

2 Carbohydrate Serving

Exchanges: 2 starch, 1 medium-fat meat