When the holidays come around we start thinking about Thanksgiving turkey, giblet gravy, and old fashioned bread stuffing or southern cornbread dressing. I can't decide between the two, so I make my Old Fashioned Dressing Recipe, a combination of cornbread and white bread stuffing. This is the side dish I go for first, then a slice of turkey breast, mashed potatoes, and gravy over all of it. If I am lucky there will be enough leftover to do Thanksgiving dinner again the next day!
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Why You'll Love Old-Fashioned Cornbread Dressing
- This old-fashioned recipe makes a great stuffing to accompany either turkey or ham for the holiday dinner.
- You can add a little chicken stock to it the following day and heat it up with the leftover turkey.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Broth
- I use chicken stock, but you can use chicken broth in this stuffing recipe. Adding the liquid a cup at a time will help avoid getting too much liquid in your dressing mixture.
- Bread
- For the cornbread you can make homemade cornbread from your favorite cornbread recipe or a packaged mix. You can also buy ready made cornbread in many grocery stores. Some cornbread mixtures contains quite a bit of honey or sugar. Those will still work, but there will be a little sweetness to your stuffing.
- For the white bread I chose to use a couple of plain croissants. You can also use any white bread, French roll, or baguette.
- For the crackers I use Ritz crackers because I love their buttery flavor. You can omit the crackers completely and just use white bread and cornbread.
- The cornbread and white bread need to be stale or dried out. If your bread is fresh you can dry it out by placing it on a baking sheet in the oven over medium-low heat. I did mine in the oven at 275 degrees until they were dried to my liking. They can burn quickly, so watch the oven carefully. They do not need to be as dry as croutons, just a bit crunchy on the outside. Stale bread absorbs the liquid easier without becoming mushy.
- Vegetables
- The leeks are totally optional, but they do impart a nice onion flavor and add great texture, which stuffing needs. If you decide to omit the leeks, double the onions.
- I used red Onions because that is what I had on hand, and I love the pop of color. Use whatever onion mixture you like.
- The carrots should be finely diced into small pieces.
- If your celery stalks are big, you should peel them and pull the tough strings out before dicing. Use a paring knife at the largest end of the stalk and gently pull the strings. Once you get them started, pull all the way down to the small end of the stalk. Repeat for any you miss. If you use the smaller inner stalks skip this step. They are fine as-is.
- I use flat-leaf parsley, but curly is fine too.
- Spices
- Sage is the traditional spice for stuffings and dressings. I also use poultry seasoning because it adds a few other subtle flavors.
Full ingredients list & measurements provided in the the recipe card.
Step-by-Step Instructions Photo Instructions
Melt butter in pot. Add carrots, celery, leeks, and onion.
Cook over medium heat until they become soft and translucent.
Add the dried croissants, cornbread, and crumbled crackers into a large bowl.
Add the parsley, salt, black pepper, poultry seasoning, and sage.
Mix well to distribute the seasonings over the crumbled cornbread & ritz.
Pour the room temperature vegetable mixture into the bowl. Mix with a spoon.
Add chicken stock 1 cup at a time until the mixture is moistened but not soggy.
Pour the mixture into a separate dish. Bake at 350 degrees f about 35 mins.
Looking for More Dressing or Stuffing Recipes?
Equipment
- Large skillet or Dutch oven
- Large mixing bowl
- Large casserole dish or baking dish
Recipe
Old Fashioned Cornbread Dressing Recipe
Equipment
- Large skillet or Dutch oven
- Large mixing bowl
- Large casserole dish or baking dish
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter 1 stick = one half cup butter
- 1 cup leeks, sliced
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 3 celery stalks, sliced
- 1 medium carrot, diced
- 2 cups cornbread, crumbled and dried
- 2 large croissants, cubed and dried out
- 26 Ritz crackers, crumbled
- 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
- 1 teaspoon dried sage
- ½ teaspoon dried poultry seasoning
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 large egg
- 28 ounces chicken broth or stock added one cup at a time
Instructions
- Melt butter in pot. Add diced carrots, sliced celery, chopped leeks, and chopped onion.
- Cook over medium heat until they become soft and translucent.
- In a large bowl add the dried cubed croissants, dried crumbled cornbread, and crumbled crackers.
- Add the chopped parsley, salt, black pepper, poultry seasoning, and sage.
- Add chicken stock 1 cup at a time until the mixture is moistened but not soggy. You will not use all the broth. Stop when the dressing mixture is fully moist but no standing liquid is in the bowl.
- Pour the mixture into a baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees f about 35 mins.
Nutrition
Approximate nutrition information is provided as a convenience and courtesy only. You are encouraged to do your own calculations if precise data is required.
We take every effort to ensure that the estimated meal cost per serving is accurate. We use a meal cost analysis application that estimates the cost of a recipe based on groceries purchased at a Walmart store in my geographical area, northern California.
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