Thanksgiving Challah Bread, Sausage, Sage & Dried Cherry Stuffing (...and the rest of dinner)

Every year I like to try new stuffing recipes and this time I was inspired by this one.  I made it my own though but did use the main ingredients.  I go to this bakery by my office which only makes Challah Bread on Fridays.  I ran over at early coffee break as it often sells out by lunch. This post is a bit of a mess, it's over two days and turkey day I was scrambling and not as organized as I would have liked...

When I got home from work, I cut this up in cubes, put it on a half sheet pan and let it go stale until Saturday night. (It was hard by then, for sure)...I tossed the bread with scant poultry seasoning...

Saturday I got most everything ready, so assembly would be easy on Sunday...

• 1 cup (4 ounces) pecans
• 1 challah loaf, cut into 1-inch cubes 
• Extra virgin olive oil, as needed
• 375 grams bulk mild Italian sausage meat, browned until cooked
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted
• 1 large onion, diced
• 3 large celery ribs, sliced
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 jalapeno pepper, diced with seeds and stems
• 1 cup dried tart Montmorency cherries, rough chopped
• 3 cups organic low-sodium "Better than Bouillon" chicken broth
• 1 organic free range egg
• Crushed red chili flakes, to taste
• 1 teaspoon of poultry seasoning
• Handful Italian parsley, coarsely chopped
• 1 package fresh sage, leaves removed from stems and torn into little pieces
• Few stalks of savory, leaves stripped from stems

I had to get my big popcorn bowl out to mix everything.  First the bread went in and then cherries (below), crushed chili and nuts.  I put a lid on this till morning.

I lightly crushed the pecans in a ziploc with a mallet.  I toasted these for a few minutes until fragrant and set aside to cool.

I fried the sausage with the jalapeno.  I moved it to paper towels and patted all the grease out.

I moved it to a container.  The onions and celery were next sauteed in butter until soft and seasoned  with S&P.

These joined the sausage when done and went in the fridge overnight when cool.  And then I cleaned up and went to bed!  I was hoping all the work I did today would pay off and ease my stress tomorrow...I made the stock and let it cool till warm.  I whisked the egg in and mixed well.  I poured the onion/sausage mix into the bowl, then the herbs: parsley, sage and savory, below.

Lastly, the stock went in and I mixed well.

For the first time ever, I did not stuff the bird.  I decided it would be easier to bake it and then reheat it up at dinner time.  I found a deep dish lasagna pan, coated it with cooking spray.  I pressed the stuffing in and this went in a pre-heated 350°F oven for about an hour.  Halfway through I dotted the top with little butter cubes, just coz...

I let it cool, covered it and into the fridge it went till game time.

I reheated it while the turkey was resting, covered with foil for a half hour at the same temperature.   I made roasted root vegetables as a side Saturday night as well.  This was made up of kobacha squash, red onions, carrots, white turnip, rutabaga, acorn squash, fresh thyme, S&P and extra virgin olive oil.

I forgot the parsnips and had no room for the yam I had.  When cooled, it went into a container into the fridge.

Of course my homemade cranberry sauce was served which features fresh orange, its zest and cinnamon.  I used organic berries this year.  I prepared this on Saturday too.

Russet potatoes were riced into half & half cream, garlic/herb Boursin cheese, S&P and unsalted butter until dreamy and creamy.

Since I didn't stuff my turkey, I had to stuff it with something, so I used the same herbs as above but added Rosemary and Thyme and made a bundle of them wrapped in bacon -2 strips.

I put this in the bird, then a halved lemon and clementine, a small red onion, a few cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed.  I brushed my turkey with olive oil and draped 2 more slices of bacon, criss-cross over it.  This went into a 325°F oven for about 4 hours.  18 lb bird.  Your oven may vary.

Once company arrived, I didn't take one more picture.  My friend took a picture of dinner/dessert so those are below.  Dessert was Pumpkin Rolls which I served with some whip cream and maple walnut ice cream.

My lovely friend gave me this gift which meant so much and was so special and thoughtful of her.  Thank you so much Stacey.  😘

Monday, October 14th:

So, the best thing about this dinner is the soup I will make and the first turkey sandwich.  I went to a different bakery and got this pullman loaf below.  It was $12, however, they do mill the flour in house and bake it there too.

My perfect sando consists of mayo, turkey, S&P, cranberry sauce and stuffing.