If you think it is too early to be thinking about Thanksgiving – think again! We only have a little over a month before the big holiday will be here. Do you have your Thanksgiving menu planned out? If you are thinking of cooking a turkey, you may want to try this tasty recipe:
For this recipe, you will need one 16 pound turkey, chicken broth, butter, salt, dried thyme, fried marjoram, dried rosemary, fresh parsley, dried chives, sliced bread, one pound of pork sausage, celery, carrots, fresh mushrooms, a half pound of fully cooked ham, green onions, pecans, one large tart apple, dried apricots, rubbed sage, ground nutmeg, and eggs.
Quite a bit of prep for this recipe, you will need to: chop enough parsley to make 1/4 cup, enough pecans to make 2 cups, 1/2 pound of fresh mushrooms, the large tart apple, enough apricots to make 1 cup. Thinly slice enough celery to make 4 cups, enough carrots to make 3 cups, and enough green onions to make 2 cups. Cube the half pound of fully cooked ham. Toast one pound of sliced bread and cut into 1/2 inch cubes.
To make the basting sauce, bring 2 1/4 cups of chicken broth, 1/2 cup of butter, and 1/2 teaspoon to a boil in a pan. Add 1 teaspoon of dried thyme, 1/4 teaspoon of dried marjoram, 1/4 teaspoon of dried rosemary, 1/4 cup of chopped parsley, and 2 tablespoons of dried chives. Remove from the heat.
Place your bread cubes in a bowl. Brown 1 pound of pork sausage in a large skillet, drain, and add to the bowl of bread cubes. Add 1/2 cup of butter to the skillet and saute 4 cups of sliced celery, 3 cups of sliced carrots, 1/2 pound of chopped mushrooms, half pound of cubed ham, and 2 cups of sliced green onions. Let this cook for 15 minutes.
Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Add the bread mixture to the skillet. Stir in 2 cups of pecans, the chopped apple, 1 cup of chopped dried apricots, 1 tablespoon of rubbed sage, 2 teaspoons of dried marjoram, 1 teaspoon of dried rosemary, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1/8 teaspoon of ground nutmeg. Stir well. Add four lightly beaten eggs and 3/4 cup of the basting sauce.
Stuff the turkey with 8 cups of the dressing. Skewer the opening and tie the drumsticks together. Place the turkey on a rack of a roasting pan and baste with the basting sauce. Put in oven and let bake for 5 to 5 1/2 hours, basting every 30 minutes. Cover the turkey with foil when it begins to brown.
Add 1 cup of chicken broth to the remaining dressing, stir gently, and place that in a 2 1/2 quart baking dish. Cover and let it bake at 325 for an hour then uncover and let it cook for an additional 10 minutes.