When it comes to Thanksgiving one of my all time favorite side dishes for the big day is my Cranberry Apple Drunkin’ Dressing. It is in my opinion the perfect dressing for Turkey!!
The inspiration for this recipe comes from one of my favorite restaurants here in Las Vegas, Table 34. Chef Wes created the most amazing dressing and serves it with his lovely roasted chicken. The minute I tried it I fell in love… it was heaven on a plate. One night while I was there, I had to take the opportunity to ask him what makes his dressing so special. The secret… you get your cranberries DRUNK before you put them in the dressing!!! Seriously, you soak the dried cranberries in brandy for an hour our so before you add them to your dressing. So, last year for Thanksgiving I thought I would come up with my version of Table 34’s dressing and here is what I came up with…
- 1 T of olive oil
- 1 lb. of sausage
- 1 large onion
- 4 stalks of celery
- 4 large carrots
- 2 apples {I prefer Granny Smith}
- 1 cup of dried cranberries
- 1½ cups of brandy
- 1 lb of dried bread crumbs {I just use the generic store bought non-seasoned stuffing mix}
- 4 cups of chicken stock
- About an hour before you begin your dressing add your dried cranberries to your brandy and set aside.
- In a large skillet, warm the olive oil and then brown the sausage on medium high heat. Once browned, remove from pan, leave the drippings and add your diced onions, carrots, celery and season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook for about 5 minutes. Add apples and cook for another 5 minutes. Add cranberries and brandy to the skillet. Cook on high for 3-4 minutes to let the alcohol cook out. Add the chicken stock. Check the seasoning at this point, add salt and pepper again if needed. Cook for another 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Place the bread dressing mix into a large bowl and add the sausage and veggie mix. Gently fold the sausage and veggies into the bread mix. At this point you need to gage whether you need to add more liquid. It's kind of up to you if you like a wet or dry dressing. If it needs more stock then add it. Taste and check your seasoning, spray your cooking dish with cooking spray and then add your dressing to the dish. Place in the oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
- Serves 10-12
Doesn’t that look yummy!
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This looks fantastic…I could go for a big bowl right now. We don’t drink alcohol in our house so we don’t have brandy…what would you suggest to substitute the brandy?
Thanks Camilla!
We don’t drink alcohol either, but I did buy a small bottle just for this recipe. Now, keep in mind this isn’t tested, but I would try cranberry juice or grape juice to replace the brandy. Let me know how it goes if you try it out.
kisses
heather
That sounds amazing … I’m pinning it for this year’s feast.
oh yum Heather! 🙂 thanks for sharing this recipe.
Um, yes please. I’m excited to add this to my Thanksgiving menu. Thanks Heather! 🙂
Great recipe for Turkey Day!
Oh my goodness, that sounds amazing. Yum!
YUM!!!! I am doing Thanksgiving for the 1st time this year. Think I am gonna try this. I may do my own breadcrumbs with sourdough bread. porb will have to toast cubes in oven an then process in food processor. Also, I am so excited about the homemade vanilla!! i did the labels the other day.They turned out GREAT! Mixing it up today. LOVE your site!! <3
thanks marcie!! good luck on your first thanksgiving… i promise this dressing will be a HIT!!
kisses
heather