Easy Unstuffed Cornbread Stuffing

When I was first married, I wanted to impress my husband with my talent in the kitchen. On our first Thanksgiving as a married couple, I decided to go all out with the Turkey, sweet potatoes, vegetable casserole - the works!

There was only one problem. I was a not a "stuffing" fan. But I knew that stuffing was one of my husband's favorite parts of the meal. I needed to come up with something easy that the both of us could enjoy not only with our Thanksgiving meal, but also with the requisite Thanksgiving left overs. It need to look good, taste good and fit well with our meal.

Then inspiration hit...and Easy Unstuffed Cornbread Stuffing was born.

The combination of ingredients was a little different than my husband was used to. But, being the good husband that he is, he tried it. He liked it! It has been a staple at our Thanksgiving dinners ever since.

You can make Easy Unstuffed Cornbread Stuffing to by using the ingredients and directions below. Enjoy!

Easy Unstuffed Cornbread Stuffing
Ingredients:
1 12 oz. box or bag of stuffing croutons
1 box store-bought cornbread mix prepared according to directions
1 cup chopped onions
1 cup chopped celery
2 medium garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup white zinfindel or white wine
2 cups chicken stock (fresh or from the can)
1/2 cup melted butter
salt and pepper to taste
Serves 12-14

Directions:

The night before the dish is to be served, prepare the cornbread according to the directions on the box. Leave the prepared recipe on the counter uncovered until you are ready to use it the next day.

The day the dish is to be served, crumble the cornbread mix into a large bowl. Add the stuffing croutons to the crumbled cornbread and set aside. Melt 1/2 cup of butter in a large saute pan over medium heat. Once melted, add the onions, garlic and celery to the pan and cook while stirring until the onions are translucent. Remove the mixture from the heat and allow it to cool slightly. Once the mixture has cooled some (not too hot to handle), pour it over the cornbread and croutons. Mix the ingredients until well combined. Pour the 2 cups of chicken stock and the 1/2 white zinfindel/wine over the mixture and stir until evenly moist. Add salt and pepper to your preferred taste.

Pour the entire contents into a large aluminum or glass baking dish and cover the top. Bake for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove the cover and continue to bake for an additional 15 minutes or until the top of the stuffing is toasty. Serve directly from the baking dish or transfer to a serving dish, garnishing the finished recipe with parsley.

This is an easy Thanksgiving recipe to make. As you get more comfortable making it, you can add variations, such as cranberries or sausage to the recipe. Enjoy!

Cooler Weather Crafting...

I woke up this morning and the weather was downright chilly for us Southwesterners. The thermometer in my car said it was 50 degrees. I know that for some that is toasty, but when you have been acclimated to 110 degrees for the last 5 months, 50 degrees is cold!

Anyhow, this cooler weather has put me in the mood to really start my holiday crafting. I've been thinking about my past projects and how I can incorporate those into "homemade" gifts this year. I have already shared a couple with you on Crafty Cam. But I am full of ideas.

With the economy as it is, we will all be looking to save a buck this season. Be looking for simple and inexpensive crafting ideas on Crafty-Cam!

-Coming up on Crafty Cam is "Tasty Turkey Cookies"

Happy Autumn!

Happy Autumn!

Yes I know that the fall is almost half over, but here in my part of the desert southwest, we don't have much of an autumn.

We don't have any trees that change from green to beautiful reds and burnt oranges. We don't have the piles of fall leaves on the ground.

What we do have are cactus that shrivel, ocotillo that lose their leaves, and ragweed pollen that would choke a giraffe - does that make sense?

Anyway, as October is drawing to a close, our days are VERY SLOWLY getting cooler. Today's daytime temperature was only 94 degrees. Our evening temperatures are falling into the low 60's. It is almost time to put away our tank tops and shorts and take out our t-shirts and capri pants and enjoy very comfortable weather.

With turkey day just around the corner, we can finally get into the spirit of Autumn.