Hands down, stuffing is my favorite side dish at any Holiday Dinner! But, I must confess, as much as I love to eat, I’m quite a picky eater and am embarrassingly particular about my stuffing! It cannot be too mushy, it cannot be cooked inside the bird (I’m paranoid about salmonella), It cannot contain celery and mushrooms… You get the point! Ha, Ha. Therefore, I always volunteer to make the stuffing, that way I can make sure it is just how it like it. (Bratty, I know!)

And.. I have another confession to make: I absolutely LOVE Stove Top stuffing. I have often made my stuffing from scratch in the past (by making my own croutons from a baguette) , but lets be real, it tastes JUST as good using stove top.. and cuts the workload in half! This easy stuffing side dish is so incredibly delightful and easy to make, no one will ever know this is a stove top stuffing hack- unless you tell them! The key here is adding a few critical fresh ingredients, especially the fresh herbs and leeks. They go such a long way to adding depth to the flavour of the stuffing!

Ingredients:

• 1 Box of Stove Top stuffing
• 1 tsp Olive or Avocado oil
• 1/2 white onion, finely chopped
• 3 Cloves garlic, pressed
• 1/8 cup Fresh Parsley, finely shopped
• 3 or 4 Sprigs Fresh Rosemary
• 1/2 Granny Smith Apple, cubed
• 1/2 Pear, cubed
• 1/2 cup water
• Salt + pepper to taste

Method:

1. Chop/ mince/ press/ cube all your fresh ingredients first so they are ready to go! (this saves a lot of time too!)
2. Over medium heat on the stove warm the olive or avocado oil (Avocado oil is a few favourite as it is flavor-less, has been shown to be healthier than Olive oil and has a higher smoke point!)
3. Add in the white onion, garlic, apple and pear and sauté for about a minute.
4. Add in the stove top croutons and flavoring
5. S L O W L Y add in the water… not all at once. This is key (if you are like me and don’t want it to be too mushy). You essentially just want to soften the bread crumbs. I know most recipes call for more water but you do get a lot of moisture from the fruit! (Feel free to add more water though if you like it with more moisture.)
6. Add the parsley, Rosemary and stir everything together
7. Be careful not to stir too much or you WILL. GET. MUSH.
8. Season with salt + pepper. Reduce temperature to low so that you don’t burn the bottom. Put the lid on.
9. From this point you just want to keep it warm and make sure the croutons and fruit are “steamed through”, not overcooked!

*IF you are a lover of celery, mushrooms or other vegetables (don’t hate me! ) feel free to add them in after the Apple + Pear. Make this Stuffing and Love it? Feel free to share on your instagram and tag us!