Oven Baked Fennel Sausage Stuffing For A Crowd Food

FENNEL SAUSAGE STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Toss cubed bread with 3 tablespoons olive oil, salt, and pepper. Spread on a baking sheet and bake until bread is crisp, about 30 minutes.
• Heat vegetable oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Crumble in sausage and cook, stirring until brown. Remove sausage; discard oil. Reheat pot over medium heat. Add 1/4 cup olive oil, and heat until hot. Add garlic, carrots, fennel, leeks, and onion, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened. Add wine and raisins. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer about 3 minutes. Stir in sausage and red pepper flakes. Remove from heat. Stir in nuts, herbs, bread, stock, butter, and eggs. Mix well.
• Mound 1 1/4 cup stuffing mixture into 1/2-cup capasity buttered muffin tins. Bake until golden and crusty on top, about 30 to 40 minutes.

CLASSIC SAUSAGE STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350˚. Butter a 3-quart baking dish. Melt 6 tablespoons butter in a large wide pot over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook, breaking up the meat, until no longer pink, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the onions, celery, sage and thyme and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken broth, 1 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper. Bring to a boil, then remove from the heat.
• Whisk the eggs and parsley in a large bowl. Add the bread cubes and sausage-broth mixture and toss until evenly combined. Transfer to the prepared baking dish, dot with the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and cover with foil.
• Bake the stuffing until hot, about 30 minutes. Uncover and bake until golden brown, 20 to 30 minutes. Let cool at least 15 minutes before serving.

OVEN-BAKED FENNEL SAUSAGE STUFFING FOR A CROWD

Steps:

• Dry your bread ahead of time by cutting it into 1/2 inch slices (if it isn't already sliced) and laying them on a single layer on baking sheets or cooling racks, and leaving them out overnight. The next day, cut the slices into 1/2 inch cubes and allow them to dry for another night. If you are in a hurry or they don't dry enough from just laying them out, dry the slices in a 225-degree oven until brittle but not brown, 30 - 40 minutes. Then cut them into cubes and proceed. You want to end up with nice 1/2 inch cubes that are not quite as dry as croutons but close to that.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Prepare two 9x13 pans with butter or cooking spray. Prepare the wild rice mix as directed on the package.
• Brown the sausage in a large pan. Remove the cooked sausage with a slotted spoon and set aside. Keep the rendered fat in the pan.
• Add 8 tablespoons butter to the pan and melt. Add the onion, celery and fennel and saute over medium-high heat and saute until translucent, about 10 minutes. Stir in all of the spices and saute for an additional 2-3 minutes until nice and fragrant. Remove from heat and the sausage back inches.
• Mix the onion mixture with the dried bread in a very large bowl (I use a large stock pot). Add in the parsley, broth and eggs and mix everything together gently but well.
• Divide the mixture into the two prepared pans. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and drizzle over the top of the stuffing. Cover the pans tightly with greased aluminum foil. You can refrigerate the stuffing at this point if you want to prepare it earlier in the day.
• Bake in the oven covered for 25 minutes, until fragrant (30-35 minutes if refrigerated). Remove foil and bake until golden brown crust forms on top, 15 to 20 minutes longer. Serve warm.

FENNEL-SAUSAGE STUFFING

Steps:

• In a large deep skillet, saute 1/2 pound crumbled sweet Italian sausage in 6 tablespoons butter for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and add 1 diced fennel bulb, 1 diced onion, and 1 tablespoon each chopped sage and thyme; cook 5 minutes, then add 1 diced peeled apple and cook 2 minutes. Pour in 2 1/2 to 3 cups chicken broth. In a large bowl, mix 2 eggs and 1/4 cup chopped parsley. Add to the bowl 16 cups toasted white bread cubes and the hot broth mixture. Gently toss the stuffing, then spread in a buttered 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Dot the top with butter or turkey pan drippings, cover and bake 30 minutes at 350. Uncover and bake until golden, 20 more minutes.

ITALIAN FENNEL SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
• In a large bowl, combine salt, fennel seed and red-pepper flakes. Add pork to the spice mixture along with the garlic, and wine. Using your hands, mix thoroughly for 1 full minute, until the pork begins to appear tacky and sticks to the palm of your hand.
• Heat a cast-iron pan over medium heat. Use a heaping tablespoon of pork mixture to make a small, thin sausage patty. Add a teaspoon or so of olive oil, and cook the patty for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, or until cooked through. Taste, and if needed, add salt or any other seasonings to the uncooked sausage mixture and mix to combine.
• Divide and form the remaining sausage into 8 2 1/2-inch patties, placing them on the prepared baking sheet as you go. Cover, and refrigerate for 30 minutes to allow the flavors to come together. (Patties can be made ahead and covered and refrigerated or frozen at this point until ready to use.)
• To cook, wipe out cast-iron pan, and return to medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil. When it shimmers, add patties in a single layer, leaving space between them. Cook 3 to 4 minutes per side, or until browned on the surface and just cooked through.
• Drain sausages on paper towels, and serve hot.

SOURDOUGH BREAD, FENNEL AND SWEET SAUSAGE STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F. Spread bread on 2 large rimmed baking sheets. Bake until just golden, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Transfer to very large bowl.
• Cook Italian sausage in large pot over medium-high heat until browned, breaking up pieces with back of fork, about 12 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer to small bowl. Melt 4 tablespoons butter in same large pot over medium-high heat. Add chopped fennel, onions and fennel seeds. Sauté until fennel and onions are tender and golden brown, about 15 minutes. Reduce heat to medium. Add pears, bell peppers and herbs. Sauté until pears and peppers are just tender, about 10 minutes. Add wine and boil until most liquid evaporates, stirring occasionally, about 4 minutes. (Toasted bread cubes, sausage and fennel mixture can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover separately. Store bread at room temperature; refrigerate sausage and fennel mixture.) Add sausage and fennel mixture to bread cubes. Season stuffing to taste with salt and pepper.
• To bake stuffing in turkey:
• Loosely fill main turkey cavity with stuffing. Add enough broth to remaining stuffing to moisten lightly (about 1/4 to 1/2 cup, depending on amount of remaining stuffing). Generously butter glass or ceramic baking dish. Spoon remaining stuffing into dish and dot remaining stuffing with 1 tablespoon butter before baking in dish. Cover with buttered foil, buttered side down. Bake stuffing in dish alongside turkey until heated through, about 30 minutes. Uncover stuffing. Bake until top is just crisp and golden, about 15 minutes.
• To bake all of stuffing in baking dish:
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Generously butter 13x9x2-inch square glass or ceramic baking dish. Add enough broth to stuffing to moisten (about 3/4 cup to 1 1/2 cups.) Transfer stuffing to prepared dish and dot stuffing with 2 tablespoons butter before baking. Cover with buttered foil, buttered side down; bake until heated through, about 30 minutes. Uncover and bake until top is crisp and golden, about 20 minutes longer. Top with fennel fronds, if desired, and serve.

SAUSAGE STUFFING WITH FENNEL AND ROASTED SQUASH

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray rimmed baking sheet with nonstick spray. Scatter squash on sheet in single layer; sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Roast squash until tender, stirring occasionally, about 55 minutes. Transfer to large bowl; cool.
• Melt butter in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add onions, celery, and fennel. Sauté 8 minutes. Add sausage. Sauté until vegetables are tender and sausage is cooked through, breaking up sausage with fork, about 10 minutes. Add all herbs; sauté 1 minute longer. Add to bowl with squash. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cool, cover, and chill.
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Divide bread between 2 rimmed baking sheets. Bake until bread is crusty but not hard, reversing sheets after 5 minutes, 10 to 12 minutes total. Transfer to very large bowl and cool.
• Butter 13x9x2-inch baking dish. vegetable mixture into bread. Whisk salt, and pepper in small bowl to blend whisk in 1 cup broth. Add egg mixture stuffing, tossing to combine evenly and adding more broth by 1/4 cupfuls if dry. Transfer stuffing to prepared dish.
• Bake stuffing uncovered until cooked through and brown and crusty on top, 60 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes.

SAUSAGE, DATE, AND FENNEL STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375°F Combine the chopped dates and the wine; leave to soak while everything else is prepared. Spread the bread cubes on a baking sheet and toast for 5-8 minutes to dry them out.
• In the skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat until shimmering; cook the sausage for 5 minutes.
• Add the diced carrot, celery, onion and sliced fennel to the sausage and sauté until softened, 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool before adding the rest of the ingredients, 10 minutes.
• Stir the diced preserved lemon, fennel fronds, parsley and soaked chopped dates into the sausage and vegetable mixture. Make sure to add any liquid left in with the chopped dates.
• In a large bowl, combine the sausage mixture with the toasted bread cubes and toss well to coat.
• Lightly beat the eggs with the salt and the water before adding to the bread cubes and sausage mixture. If the bread and sausage mixture appears too dry, add a bit more water, up to 1/2 cup.
• Lightly oil a casserole dish and spoon in the bread cube and sausage mixture. Mound it firmly in the dish and drizzle with olive oil, bake for 30-40 minutes until the crust is light brown and crispy.

SAUSAGE FENNEL STUFFING

Steps:

• In a 10- to 12-inch heavy skillet cook sausage over moderately high heat, stirring and breaking up lumps with a fork, until no longer pink. Transfer sausage with a slotted spoon to a large bowl.
• Add butter to fat remaining in skillet and cook onions, chopped fennel, fennel seeds, and salt to taste over moderate heat, stirring, until fennel is softened, about 10 minutes. Add apéritif, thyme, and tarragon and cook, stirring, until most liquid is evaporated. Add mixture to sausage with corn bread or packaged stuffing and toss to combine well. Season stuffing with salt and pepper and cool completely. Stuffing may be made 2 days ahead and chilled, covered. (To prevent bacterial growth do not stuff turkey cavities ahead.)

SAUSAGE FENNEL STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°F.
• Spread bread crumbs in 2 shallow baking pans and bake in upper and lower thirds of oven until golden and dry, about 15 minutes. Cool crumbs in pans on racks, then transfer to a large bowl.
• Cook sausage in a dry 12-inch nonstick skillet over moderate heat, stirring and breaking up pieces with a fork, until browned and cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer to bowl with bread crumbs with a slotted spoon.
• Melt 6 tablespoons butter in skillet over moderate heat, then add onions, fennel bulb, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until vegetables are softened, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Finely grind fennel seeds in coffee/spice grinder, then add to vegetables in skillet along with thyme and tarragon and cook, stirring, 1 minute.
• Transfer vegetables to bowl with bread crumbs and sausage and toss gently but thoroughly. Spoon stuffing into a buttered 3- to 3 1/2-quart shallow baking dish. Drizzle with stock and dot with remaining 2 tablespoons butter, cut into bits. Bake, covered, in middle of oven 30 minutes, then uncover and bake until browned, about 30 minutes more.