Cornbread Andouille Dressing

Welcome, welcome! I am glad you’re with me today as we make our way through the Thanksgiving menu. Today we are focusing on dressing. Cornbread Andouille Dressing, to be precise. I do a slightly different stuffing every year. But as much as I think I will do a different bread as the base, I can’t seem to quit cornbread! Sometimes I dream of a crusty sourdough dressing…well, maybe next year. Speaking of bread…I have an exciting project here at the house coming up in the weeks after Thanksgiving that I am so excited to share with you! So stay tuned….

The Cornbread

Use whatever cornbread recipe you prefer. I like the recipe on the back of the Bob’s Red Mill Corn Meal package. Bob’s Red Mill corn meal has a medium grind which I think adds nice texture and grit to the cornbread. The one thing I might ask you do differently than what the package recommends is baking the corn bread in a cast iron skillet, or other oven-safe skillet. This method makes an unbeatable buttery, crunchy crust.

While you’re mixing up the batter, get your oven preheating to 350 degrees and put your skillet in to preheat with the oven. When the batter is ready, carefully pull out the skillet and drop in 2 tablespoons of butter and tilt around the pan to get the butter to melt across the bottom and up the sides.

The batter will sizzle when it hits the pan and the sides will begin to puff up, immediately slide it into the oven and bake for 25 minutes, or until the top is golden brown.

Cornbread Andouille Dressing

While the cornbread is baking, let’s prep. I have about 8 oz of Andouille sausage. You can use more if you like! Slice the sausages in half lengthwise, then slice into 1/8″ half moon shaped slices. Drizzle about a tablespoon of oil into a skillet and brown the sausage slices over medium high heat.

Now we can get going on the veggies for the dressing. I have 3 ribs of celery, one medium onion, about 1 cup of mushrooms (a mix of crimini, oyster and shiitake). Once the sausage is browned, use a slotted spoon to transfer the sausage to a paper towel-lined plate and toss your all the veggies into the pan, sprinkle with about a teaspoon of Kosher salt. Reduce the heat to medium.

While the veggies are cooking, measure out two and a half cups turkey or chicken broth and 1/2 cup of half and half. Finely mince fresh sage leaves, fresh thyme leaves and 2 cloves of garlic.

When the veg has cooked down a little and the onions are translucent, add the fresh herbs and garlic to the mix. Stir and let cook for about a minute or so, then add the broth and the half and half. Crack black pepper over the mixture, give it a stir and bring it to a simmer over medium-low.

Back to the Cornbread!

By now the cornbread should be done. Pull it out, let it cool for about 5 minutes, then turn it out on a wire rack to cool further. once it is cool enough to handle, slice it into 1″ cubes and separate the cubes so they cool further.

Back to the Veggies!

In a small bowl, whisk together 2 tablespoons cornstarch and 1/2 cup turkey or chicken broth. Slowly whisk this into the veggie mixture and let simmer until it’s thickened slightly (like a loose gravy), about 10 minutes. Taste the mixture and add more salt and pepper to taste.

While that’s thickening, transfer the sausage to a big bowl and toss the cornbread cubes on top of the sausage without mixing. Once the veggie mixture has thickened, pour it over the cornbread and sausage. Very gently mix it together taking care not to break up the cornbread cubes much, but also coating all the cubes with liquid and veggies.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the mixture sit for about 15 minutes. Stop by and give it a gentle stir every 5 minutes or so. And re-cover after each mix. Spray a 9″ x 13″ baking dish with nonstick spray.

Once the cornbread cubes have absorbed the liquid, spread the dressing into the dish and bake uncovered for 40 minutes or until the top is golden and there isn’t any more bubbling liquid. After you pull it out of the oven, let the dressing sit for about 10 minutes before serving.

I hope you give this Cornbread Andouille Dressing a try! Alex gave it his seal of approval, so I think it will be a hit at our Thanksgiving. If you’re looking for other Thanksgiving sides, try my Fall Harvest Salad, or Sweet Potato Casserole. More Thanksgiving sides and fun fall cocktails are part of the Djalali Cooks subscription, so if you haven’t already, be sure to subscribe! Remember, you can also find me on Pinterest, facebook and Instagram. Thanks everyone, take care and be well. xo Kelly

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Cornbread Andouille Dressing

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Side Dish – American

By Kelly Djalali, Adapted from America's Test Kitchen – Serves: 4-8

Prep Time: ~50 Minutes – Cooking Time: 65-70 Minutes (including Cornbread) – Total Time: ~2 Hours

This traditional Thanksgiving side has all the flavors you expect, with Andouille sausage for a little kick.

Ingredients

• 1 Batch Cornbread, cut into 1" cubes (I recommend Bob's Red Mill)
• 3 Ribs Celery, diced
• 1 Medium Onion, diced
• 1 tsp. Kosher Salt (more to taste)
• 1 tsp. Fresh Cracked Black Pepper (more to taste)
• 8 oz Andouille Sausage, sliced into half moons
• 1 tbsp. Olive Oil
• 1 cup mixed Mushrooms, roughly chopped
• 2 tbsp. Fresh Thyme, minced
• 2 tbsp. Fresh Sage, minced
• 2 Cloves Garlic, minced
• 3 cups Turkey or Chicken Broth (1/2 cup reserved for cornstarch slurry)
• 1/2 cup half and half
• 2 tbsp. Corn Starch

Instructions

1

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2

Prepare Cornbread according to package directions.

3

When cornbread is cool enough to handle, cut into 1" cubes, set aside.

4

Slice Andouille sausage into 1/8" half moon shapes and brown over medium-high heat with olive oil. Use a slotted spoon to transfer sausage to a paper towel-lined plate.

5

Add celery, onions and mushrooms to skillet and cook over medium heat until onions are translucent.

6

Add thyme, sage and garlic to veggie mixture and cook for another minute.

7

Pour 2 1/2 cups of broth and the half and half into veggie mixture, bring to a simmer.

8

In a separate bowl, whisk together corn starch and 1/2 cup of broth and slowly whisk into veggie mixture.

9

Bring veggie mixture back to a simmer and let thicken, about 10 minutes.

10

Add sausage to a large bowl, and add cornbread cubes on top, but do not mix.

11

Once veggie mixture is thickened to a loose gravy, pour over cornbread and sausage and gently mix to coat all the cornbread.

12

Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for 15 minutes, gently stirring the mixture every 5 minutes and re-covering between mixing.

13

Spray a 9" x13" baking dish with nonstick spray and spread in the dressing.

14

Bake, uncovered for 40 minutes or until the top is golden and the liquid is fully absorbed.

15

Remove from oven and let sit for 10 minutes before serving.