Whole Grain Stuffing With Kale And Dried Fruit Food

SAUSAGE AND KALE STUFFING

Steps:

• Heat oven to 300F.
• Spread bread cubes out on a large baking sheets and bake, stirring once, until dried but not browned, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Transfer to a large bowl.
• Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat.
• Add sausage and cook, breaking up chunks with the side of a spoon, until browned, about 6 minutes.
• Transfer sausage to bowl with bread with a slotted spoon.
• Return skillet to medium heat and add half the kale and 1/4 cup water.
• Cook, stirring, until kale is wilted; stir in remaining kale.
• Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until kale is tender, about 8 minutes, adding more water by tablespoons if necessary.
• Add onion, garlic, celery and 3 tablespoons butter and cook until vegetables are tender, about 6 minutes.
• Stir in apples and cook 3 minutes.
• Scrape vegetable mixture into bowl with bread and toss.
• Add broth, thyme, salt and pepper and toss again.
• Preheat oven to 350F. Use remaining 2 tablespoons butter to coat a casserole dish.
• Transfer stuffing to casserole dish and bake until lightly browned and crisp on top, 50 to 60 minutes.

WHOLE-GRAIN STUFFING WITH KALE AND DRIED FRUIT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Put bread on a baking sheet and toast, turning once or twice, until golden and dry, 10 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven and cool a bit.
• While bread toasts, put a large pot of water to boil and salt it. Fill a large bowl with ice water. When pot comes to a boil, add kale; let it wilt for about a minute, then drain and plunge it into ice water. When cool, squeeze kale dry and roughly chop. Put kale, oil, vinegar, figs, dates, shallot, sage and nuts in a large salad bowl. Sprinkle with salt and lots of pepper and toss to coat.
• Fill a bowl with tap water and soak bread for about 3 minutes. Gently squeeze a slice dry and crumble it into salad bowl. Repeat with remaining slices. Toss well to combine stuffing and let sit for 15 to 20 minutes or cover and refrigerate for up to a day. Before finishing, taste and adjust seasoning.
• Place stuffing in bird and bake. Or to bake it outside of bird, grease a 2-quart or 9-by-13-inch baking dish and fill it with stuffing. Dot top with bits of butter if you like. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes; then uncover and finish baking until crisp, another 10 to 15 minutes more.

KALE STUFFING

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter a 2-quart baking dish.
• Massage kale for a few minutes until leaves are wilted.
• Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic. Cook and stir until onion is tender, about 5 minutes. Add kale and heat through.
• Place kale mixture in a bowl; add bread and Parmesan cheese. Pour in broth and toss until mixture is moistened. Season with salt and pepper; mix well. Transfer mixture to the prepared baking dish.
• Bake in the preheated oven until browned, 30 to 40 minutes.