Sausage and Apple Stuffing
Start with the best stuffing recipe ever, then add savory sausage and sweet apples to it! Everybody who has tried this Sausage and Apple Stuffing has come back for seconds.
This Apple Sausage Stuffing Will Be The Star of Your Table
With over a quarter of a million page views, my husband’s grandma’s old fashioned Stuffing Recipe has become a go-to recipe for home chefs year after year since it was published.
While nothing I can do could compete with, well, Grandma, today I am offering an option to take that original recipe and just add a bit . . . more.
The sweet-and-savory pairing of rich, savory sausage and sweet, tart apples is always nice, but especially so in stuffing.
Try this for a holiday gathering, or make a batch to go with pork chops any time of the year. I guarantee it will bring you comfort with every bite.
Why You Will Love This Sausage and Apple Stuffing Recipe
- Tender apples, soft bread cubes and meaty sausage add layers of flavor and texture that make this stuffing super satisfying to eat.
- The prep work is pretty simple, but creates a stuffing that tastes gourmet, so you can impress your guests with minimal effort.
- Make this a day or two before the holiday and bake it before dinner. I do this every year!
Apple Stuffing Ingredients
- hearty white sliced bread – this is the sturdy bread base that will absorb all the flavors. I usually use Pepperidge Farm Farmhouse Hearty White sliced bread or something similar. Sourdough bread is also nice here.
- herb seasoned cubed stuffing (the dried cubes in a bag) – these add an additional textural element to the dish. I usually use Pepperidge Farm brand here, as well.
- sausage – you’ll need 1 pound of mild Italian sausage. If your store sells loose sausage, that’s the easiest, but we usually end up buying it in links and removing it from the casings.
- apples – we like Gala apples for their combination of sweet and tart, and how well they stand up to cooking. Honeycrisp and any type of apples good for cooking and baking are also great here!
- milk – this adds a creamy richness (and moisture) to the apple sausage stuffing.
- eggs – these act as a binding agent, ensuring that the stuffing holds together as it bakes.
- chicken stock – for moistening the stuffing and adding extra flavor. Chicken broth is also fine.
- unsalted butter – it’s not a good stuffing without plenty of butter to make it irresistible!
- onion and garlic – these aromatic ingredients add layers of complexity and depth of flavor. No celery in this stuffing – I don’t think it needs it.
- poultry seasoning, dried sage, salt and pepper – these seasonings add the perfect balance of savory and herbal notes to every bite of this sausage and apple stuffing recipe. Yes, there is sage (and a good bit of thyme) in poultry seasoning, but we use extra sage, too! You can also garnish the finished dish with fresh sage, if desired.
How to Make Sausage and Apple Stuffing
1. TOAST. Place torn white bread on a baking pan and bake until it’s lightly toasted and crisp.
2. COMBINE. Toss the cubed stuffing with beaten eggs, stock and milk in a large bowl.
3. SAUSAGE. Cook the sausage in a large skillet until it’s lightly browned, breaking it up into small crumbles as it cooks.
4. ADD. Add the apples, garlic, onion, salt, pepper and butter and cook until the apples are softened, then stir in the poultry seasoning and sage.
5. STIR. Add the toasted white bread, melted butter, and cooked sausage mixture to the bowl with the cubed stuffing, and stir everything together.
6. BAKE. Pour the bread mixture into a greased baking dish and bake (start covered and then uncover), until the top is golden brown.
Home Chef Tips for Sausage Apple Stuffing
- To enhance the homemade flavor, use homemade turkey stock made with lots of aromatic vegetables and herbs in place of chicken stock.
- For a vegetarian apple stuffing, use homemade vegetable stock, and omit the sausage, of course.
WANT TO SAVE THIS RECIPE?
Enter your email below and we'll send it to your inbox.
How to Serve This Sausage and Apple Stuffing Recipe
Serve this apple stuffing as a side dish for Thanksgiving or Christmas alongside a showstopping main dish, lots of other side dishes, and some beautiful desserts.
Mains
More Sides
Apple Stuffing Recipe Storage
- MAKE AHEAD. You can fully assemble this sausage apple stuffing in its casserole dish in advance, through the beginning of step 7 in the recipe card below. Cover and refrigerate up to 2 days. When you’re ready to bake the stuffing, remove it from the refrigerator and allow it to come to room temperature for 1 hour before baking according to the directions below.
- LEFTOVERS. Any cooked, leftover apple sausage stuffing can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
More Foxes Love Lemons Favorites
Apple Sausage Stuffing
Ingredients
- ½ 24 ounce loaf hearty white sliced bread torn into small pieces (12 ounces) (6 to 7 Slices)
- 2 eggs
- 1 bag herb seasoned cubed stuffing (the dried cubes in a bag) (12 ounces)
- 3 cups chicken stock
- 1 cup milk
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter divided
- Nonstick cooking spray
- 1 pound Italian sausage casings removed, if necessary
- 3 Gala apples cored and chopped
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- ½ medium white onion finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried sage
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place torn white bread on rimmed baking pan. Transfer to oven and bake 13 to 15 minutes or until crisp. Set toasted bread aside; leave oven on.
- Meanwhile, place eggs in large bowl and whisk until smooth. Add cubed stuffing, stock and milk; toss to combine.
- Melt 6 tablespoons butter in small pot or microwave-safe dish. Spray large casserole dish with cooking spray.
- Heat large skillet over medium heat. Add sausage and cook 6 minutes or until lightly browned, breaking sausage up with side of spoon as it cooks. Sausage does NOT need to be fully cooked at this stage, but it does need to be fully broken up into small crumbles.
- Add apples, garlic, onion, salt, pepper and remaining 2 tablespoons butter. Cook 10 to 12 minutes or until apples and vegetables are slightly softened, stirring occasionally. Add poultry seasoning and sage; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly.
- Add toasted white bread, melted butter, and sausage mixture to bowl with cubed stuffing and milk. Stir for 1 minute or until toasted bread is very well moistened.
- Transfer mixture to prepared baking dish and cover with foil. Transfer to oven and bake 30 minutes. Remove foil; bake 15 minutes longer or until the top of the stuffing is golden brown and the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F.
