Cornbread Dressing for a Crowd
This cornbread stuffing has a rich buttery flavor, crisp, toasted top, and a moist interior. Chunks of pork sausage add a savory depth of flavor, while toasted pecans add a nutty crunch. This recipe makes an extra large batch with 14 to 16 servings. Make the cornbread ahead of time or purchase 18 ounces of store-bought cornbread croutons. If you make your own cornbread, you will need to make two batches of our buttery cornbread recipe.
Servings: 16 to 18 servings
Ingredients
- 12 cups cubed cornbread**
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups half and half
- 8 tablespoons butter melted
- 3 eggs
- 1-½ pounds ground sausage optional
- 3 medium onions chopped
- 3 to 4 celery ribs chopped
- 1 tablespoon dried thyme
- 1 tablespoon dried sage
- 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
- 1-½ teaspoons salt
- 1-½ cups pecans toasted and chopped
- ½ cup chopped fresh parsley
- optional: 4 tablespoons butter melted (to drizzle over the top)
Instructions
- Before you start: you will need a very large bowl (about 6 quarts) to mix the dressing. If you don’t have a large enough bowl, divide the mixture among two bowls. See the notes for options to use as a baking dish.
Make the Cornbread Croutons
- Heat the oven to 300°F. Spread the cornbread cubes out on a large baking sheet (or use two half-sheet pans). Bake in the oven for 60 to 90 minutes or until dry like croutons.
Make the Cornbread Stuffing
- Whisk the chicken broth, half and half, melted butter and eggs together in a large bowl.
- Add the cornbread croutons and use a large spatula to gently fold the crouton mixture until they are all moistened. Initially, it will look like there is too much liquid but just let the croutons soak up the liquid.
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook, stirring to break the sausage up, until browned (about 6 minutes).
- Transfer the sausage to the bowl of cornbread (you don’t need to stir it in yet).
- Place the skillet back over medium-high heat and add the onions and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft. Stir in the thyme, sage, pepper, and salt. Cook for 2 more minutes, then transfer it to the top of the cornbread mixture.
- Add the toasted pecans and chopped parsley to the cornbread mixture and gently fold everything together until well blended. Some of the cornbread cubes will crumble, but if you are gentle, there will be some larger chunks of cornbread to add texture to the dish.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 60 minutes (or overnight) to give time for the cornbread to absorb the liquid and develop flavor.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Grease a 15 x 10-inch baking dish (or two 9-inch square baking pans) and transfer the cornbread stuffing mixture to the dish. If there is any liquid left in the bowl, drizzle it over the top of the stuffing.
- Drizzle 4 tablespoons of melted butter over the top.
- Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until golden brown.
Notes
- In order to get 12 cups of cubed cornbread, you will need to make two batches of our buttery cornbread.
- This recipe makes an extra large batch of cornbread stuffing. We used a 15 x 10-inch baking dish that holds 5 quarts. If you don’t have a large dish, you can use two baking dishes that hold 2-1/2 quarts each (9 x 9-inch dishes or two 11 x 7-inch dishes).
- You can replace the dried thyme and sage with fresh herbs (just double the amount). Another delicious substitution is to replace the thyme, sage, salt, and pepper with 2 tablespoons of Greek Freak Mediterranean blend.
Recipe Variations:
- Add 1 cup of dried cranberries or raisins.
- Add 10 ounces of sautéed mushrooms.
- You can make this vegetarian if you omit the sausage and replace the chicken broth with vegetable broth.
- You can swap the toasted pecans for almond slivers or pine nuts (or omit them entirely if you like).
Nutrition
Serving: 1 | Calories: 764kcal | Carbohydrates: 72g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 45g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 26g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 153mg | Sodium: 1899mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g
