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–+ servings
a baked dish of southern cornbread dressing with cranberries.

Southern Cornbread Dressing with Cranberries

Alewyfe
This traditional homemade southern cornbread stuffing recipe will brighten up your holiday table with the pop of fresh cranberries & herbs.
5 from 3 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American, Southern
YIELD 8 servings

Ingredients
  

Sauteed onions & celery

  • 8 oz salted butter (2 sticks)
  • 2 cups yellow onions, medium dice (substitute white or sweet onions)
  • 1 tbsp kosher salt or to taste
  • 2 large bay leaves (optional)
  • 1 ½ cups celery ribs and inner leaves, medium dice
  • 3-5 cloves garlic, chopped

Wet ingredients

  • 6 large eggs
  • 2 cups turkey, chicken, or vegetable stock (approximately)
  • ½ tsp kosher salt
  • ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper

Seasonings

  • 1 large turkey liver, washed and finely chopped (optional)
  • ⅔ cup fresh or frozen cranberries
  • ½ cup fresh parsley, chopped
  • 2 tbsp fresh sage leaves, chopped (sub 1 tbsp dried sage)
  • 2 tbsp fresh thyme leaves, stripped from stems (sub 2 tsp dried thyme leaves)
  • 1 tsp Old Bay seasoning or celery salt
  • 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper (or to taste)

Instructions
 

prep ingredients:

  • Crumble the day-old cornbread into large pieces and place in a big mixing bowl. Leave the pieces between 1"-3", with a mix of sizes to add to the texture of the baked dressing. You can always break them up smaller, but you can't put them back together, so don't over crumble it.
  • Peel and dice the onion (medium dice).
  • Wash and chop the celery (medium dice).
  • Peel and finely chop the garlic cloves.
  • Rinse the herbs, pat them dry, and chop them finely.
  • If you are adding the turkey liver, rinse and chop it very finely, then set aside in the fridge.

cook vegetables:

  • In a large, heavy skillet or dutch oven, melt the butter over medium heat (watch carefully so that it doesn't burn).
  • Add the diced onions to the pan and stir. Lower the heat slightly.
  • Sweat the onions, along with a large bay leaf or two, a teaspoon of salt and some freshly ground black pepper, until the onions are translucent and just beginning to color.
  • Add about a tablespoon each of chopped fresh sage, parsley, and thyme, and stir again.
  • Add the chopped celery & garlic & stir well. Saute lightly for a few minutes over medium-low heat until the celery is translucent.
  • Remove the pan from the heat and let the mixture cool slightly. Remove the bay leaves (toss in your stockpot if you have turkey stock simmering for gravy).

egg mixture:

  • Crack eggs & whisk together with a pinch of salt and some more freshly ground black pepper.
  • Add about one cup of hot stock to the eggs, carefully whisking well while pouring to avoid curdling the eggs.

combine dressing:

  • Mix the cornbread cubes with the slightly cooled onion, celery, and butter mixture, folding gently to mix.
  • If you are using the turkey liver in your dressing, fold the finely chopped liver into the mixture now.
  • Fold in the beaten egg mixture, fresh herbs, and fresh or frozen cranberries.
  • Add additional stock, a half cup at a time, until the cornbread is uniformly coated and moist without being soggy or soaked through. The mixture should hold together but not swimming in liquid. You can always add more stock as the mixture bakes if it is drying out.
  • Don't overmix the dressing... you don't want a uniform mush, but a chunky mixture that is evenly moist and well combined.

prepare the casserole:

  • Carefully pour the cornbread dressing mixture into a buttered casserole dish or baking pan.
  • For crispier stuffing, use a wider, shallow pan, and a deeper pan or dutch oven for a denser dressing (this will affect baking time- a shallower pan will bake faster).
  • Gently spread out the mix in an even layer, and cover the pan with foil.
  • If you are making the cornbread dressing ahead of time, it can be quickly refrigerated overnight, or frozen for several months. Do not let the mixture sit out at room temperature, especially if any of the ingredients were still warm when you combined them.

bake & serve:

  • Bake in a preheated 375 F oven for 45-55 minutes, or until the temperature in the center of the dressing is at least 165 F and the top is golden brown.
  • Remove the foil from the pan during the last 20 minutes of baking so that the dressing can crisp up on top without drying out or burning.
  • You can bake this in a slightly hotter or cooler oven, if you have other things in the oven. Adjust baking time as needed to make sure the dressing gets up to 165 F before serving.
Keyword autumn, holiday, old-fashioned, savory, savory baking, southern, Thanksgiving, traditional, winter, Yule
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