Cooking and eating this stuffing always brings back so many joyful family memories. We used to go to my grandparents house every Thanksgiving and my granddad would never leave the kitchen. Thanksgiving was his thing and boy was he good at it! Before he died I asked him to teach me how he made his secret “cornbread stuffing”. On our last Thanksgiving together I watched him very closely and attentively make this stuffing, not missing a single step and it is something I will never forget. This stuffing is more than just memories though, it really is the best. The combination of the ground beef and sausage with all the veggies and the homemade turkey drippings really makes it to die for. I make this dish throughout the year, stuffing doesn’t have to be made only on Thanksgiving!
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Prep Time:
30m
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Cook Time:
1h 15m
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Total Time:
1h 45m
Ingredients
- 2 boxes Jiff Cornbread mix (plus the ingredients on the back to make cornbread)
- 5 slices stale white bread, just leave it out overnight
- 2 tbsp. butter
- 1 large yellow onion (about 2 cups), small chopped
- 8 stalks of celery (about 2 cups), small chopped
- 1/2 lb ground breakfast sausage
- 1/2 lb ground grass-fed beef
- 2 tsp. fresh thyme, chopped
- 3 c turkey juice dripping or turkey stock, I do half of both and make my own stock
- 2 eggs
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Bake Jiffy cornbread according to the package instructions. Let rest.
- In a large saute pan, cook the onions, celery, and thyme in the butter on medium heat until the onions are translucent and the vegetables are tender. This process takes about 20 minutes. When the vegetables are soft, add both ground meats. Cook the meat until there is no pink left. The meat should be fully cooked. When the meat is done, add in the cornbread and white bread, breaking them into chunks as you add them to the pan. I usually do about 1 inch chunks. Carefully combine the bread and meat mixture while adding in the stock. You want the mixture to be very moist but not mush. Taste the mixture and season with salt and pepper accordingly. When the seasoning is adjusted and the stuffing has cooled slightly, add in the eggs and combine. The heat should be off at this step. When all the eggs are incorporated into the stuffing, pour into a large buttered baking dish. Bake the stuffing for 30 to 45 minutes. The stuffing is ready when the top starts to turn golden brown. Enjoy!
xo, Rachel
