Sweet Sausage Stuffing with Cornbread, Apples and Pecans

Looking for a twist on your regular stuffing recipe?  Give this slightly sweet recipe a try- it will amaze your Thanksgiving guests!

Serves 10

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Prep time- 1 hour

Ingredients

10 cups cooked cornbread, crumbled and put into a large bowl

6 links cooked sweet sausage

½ cup unsalted butter

1 cup chopped sweet, or Vidalia onions

2 cups chopped celery

1 cup chopped carrots

2 cups peeled, chopped granny smith apples

2 teaspoons brown sugar

1 tablespoon honey

3 cups chicken stock

3 tablespoons chopped Italian flat-leaf parsley

1 cup chopped pecans

2 tablespoons dried or 3 tablespoon fresh sage

1 tablespoon fresh cracked black pepper

1 teaspoon Kosher or sea salt

Directions

Chop up the cooked Italian sweet sausage into 1-inch pieces- place in the bowl with the cornbread.

Melt the butter in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat.

Add the onions, celery, carrots, and apples- season with salt, pepper, and sage.  Cook for approximately 5 minutes until the edges become brown and caramelized.

Add the brown sugar and honey- stir.

Deglaze the pan with the chicken stock continuing to mix, making sure to get all of the flavor-bits off the bottom of the pan.

Place the contents of the sauté pan over the sausage and cornbread mixture.  Add the chopped parsley.

Toss the stuffing thoroughly; adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.

Put the stuffing in a greased, oven-safe container and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees until the top becomes lightly browned.