Stuffing 8 Ways

If turkey is the star of the Thanksgiving show, then stuffing is the lead supporting actor. Its role is to help the main dish shine, while also adding depth and intrigue on its own. It’s serious business, but we’re here to help with eight of our favorite turkey dressing recipes.

Which turkey stuffing recipes will you try this year? Will you stick with the buttery, thyme-studded classic stuffing recipe? Will you add a little Southern flair and opt for a cornbread and sausage dressing? Or will you throw out all convention and surprise everyone with Thanksgiving stuffing balls?

Whether you prefer your cubed bread to be sweet and savory or stuffed with sausage, read on for some stand-out stuffing options. We hope you’ll find that each one is worthy of a repeat viewing, known in Thanksgiving parlance as leftovers.

CLASSIC HERB STUFFING

You can’t go wrong with this Classic Herb Stuffing recipe. It’s loaded with everything you’d expect, like butter, bread, celery, onion, thyme and broth, along with a few surprises, including Lawry’s® Seasoned Salt and McCormick® Poultry Seasoning. The result: a flavor-packed, tender-crisp, lightly browned stuffing served alongside the bird that deserves every compliment it receives.

APPLE CRANBERRY STUFFING

This sweet-and-savory stuffing is like a fall festival, chockablock with apples, cranberries and apple juice, alongside the traditional celery, onions and bread cubes. For stuffing fans who love their traditional dressing but are open to new tastes and textures, this recipe is one to be thankful for.

CORNBREAD SAUSAGE STUFFING

You can practically hear this stuffing proclaim, “Move over, turkey!” That’s because this dressing recipe reads like a meal, itself, complete with sausage, cornbread, bell pepper, celery and onions. Inspired by cornbread stuffing that’s popular in the South, this may be one to repeat, even after the holidays have passed.

SAGE CORNBREAD STUFFING

You can tell we’re cornbread stuffing fans, because we couldn’t resist sharing two cornbread stuffing recipes. Similar to the recipe above, this Cornbread Sage Stuffing has the expected crumbled cornbread and hearty sausage, but it veers left with the addition of sage, which gives the dish a distinctive earthy, woodsy accent.

SAGE DRESSING RECIPE

Sage also pairs perfectly with stuffing of the white bread variety, as you’ll see in this recipe. For cooks who are short on time, this recipe is especially easy to throw together, because it calls for a package of unseasoned stuffing mix, which you’ll combine with onions, celery, butter, broth and spices. Throw it all in the oven and you can focus on other important matters of the day—like pie.

 CROCKPOT CRANBERRY STUFFING

This stuffing recipe practically cooks itself. You’ll start out by sautéing celery and onions in butter and then mixing in festive apples and cranberries. Then, you’ll transfer the mix, along with chicken stock and cubed bread into the crockpot, where it’ll cook on low for about three hours. That means your house will smell like Thanksgiving long before the turkey is done!

SAUSAGE STUFFING MUFFINS

Whoever came up with the idea for making muffins out of stuffing deserves a genius grant. These portable pastries have a little bit of everything: sausage, cranberries, apples, celery, onion, bread and fall seasonings. And the creative presentation may just be the talk of the Thanksgiving table.

THANKSGIVING STUFFING BALLS

Speaking of innovation, these Thanksgiving Stuffing Balls are the antidote to your holiday leftovers. Made from chopped turkey and leftover stuffing, they can replace or complement the day-after turkey sandwich. The cranberry dipping sauce is optional, but highly recommended.