Emmer Bread and Sausage Stuffing

It is finally November. Well, ok. Who am I kidding. Finally isn’t the right word. It is ALREADY November. I’m still not sure where July went and already we’re into November. But since it’s now November, we can start talking seriously about Thanksgiving recipes.

I love Thanksgiving. What can be better than a day centered completely around food? Well, how about a day centered completely around local food? I hope you’ve ordered your Thanksgiving turkey already. If not, there are still a few options, including Bill the Butcher in Woodinville.

But what’s a turkey without stuffing? I love stuffing. I only have it twice a year, so that makes it all the more special. This stuffing is not only tasty, it’s actually low carb, relatively low fat, and almost completely local. Cook it in or out of the bird and serve it with some rich gravy. Since Thanksgiving can be a hectic day for the cook, I recommend making the ‘cornbread’ and Emmer a day ahead of time.

Bluebird Grain Farms ‘Corn Bread’ Sausage Stuffing

First, make the corn bread.

• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 cup Bluebird Emmer flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 cup Bluebird Cracked Emmer
• 3/4 cup buttermilk (available from Seabreeze Farms)
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 tsp sea salt
• 2 large eggs

1. Preheat your oven to 400. In a cast iron skillet, melt the butter.
2. In a large bowl mix the dry ingredients together.
3. In a smaller bowl, mix the wet ingredients.
4. Combine, stirring just to mix. Don’t over mix.
5. Pour the batter in the cast iron pan and bake for 25-30 minutes.

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Next, cook up the Emmer Farro. That’s exceedingly simple. Just combine 1 cup of Emmer with 4-5 cups of water and a little bit of salt. Boil for 50 minutes. If you’ve got water leftover, drain.

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Winter carrots are a brilliant orange

Now comes the stuffing assembly. These next steps will make your kitchen smell amazing! Be prepared for drooling family members hovering around the oven.

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 1 large shallot, minced
• 1 large sprig rosemary, minced
• 1/4 cup dry Sherry or a local dry white wine
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 1/4 cup butter
• Lemon zest
• 1 large carrot, chopped
• 3 stalks of celery, chopped
• 2 eggs
• 9 oz Andouille or Hot Italian sausage (precooked), diced

1. Place the olive oil in a large skillet on medium high.
2. Add the onion slices and some salt. Stir for 2 minutes, then turn the heat to medium low.
3. Continue to cook the onions for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally until they are caramelized.
4. Put another saute pan on the stove and melt the butter over medium heat. Add the celery, carrot, shallot, sausage, and rosemary. Cook for 5 minutes.
5. Add the garlic and cook for another couple of minutes.
6. Add the chicken broth and heat through.
7. The onions should be done now, so add the 1/4 cup of white wine to the onion pan and deglaze for a minute.
8. Turn off the heat and let the onions sit.
9. Crumble the corn bread into a very large bowl. Make sure you’ve got some good sized chunks.
10. Mix in the Farro.
11. Pour the sausage mixture over the corn bread crumbs and stir. Add the onions and stir again.
12. Lastly, pour two beaten eggs over the whole thing and give it one more short mix.
13. Stuffing can be baked at 375 or stuffed in a bird. If you’re cooking the stuffing in a baking dish, cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Then uncover and bake for another 20 minutes, or until the top is crispy. If you’re cooking the stuffing in the bird, make sure that it gets up to temperature (165-170 degrees).
14. Serve and enjoy!

Notes: I was a little leery of using all of the Emmer products for stuffing. I love Emmer Farro, and even use the Emmer flour quite often, but Emmer breads always have a distinctly ‘healthy’ flavor. The stuffing, though, was amazing. High fiber, low fat, high protein, and it tasted and smelled just like Thanksgiving should. I might add a little more sausage though. We used 2 links and I think 3 would have been better. I’d also only crumble about 3/4 of the cornbread. There was a lot of bulk to this stuffing and it was easily enough to serve 8-10 people if not a few more.

Every year it seems someone starts the debate as to whether you should cook the stuffing in the bird or outside of the bird. Well, I’m not going to be able to give you a definitive answer. General recommendations these days tell you to cook the stuffing outside the bird for safety. I’ve had stuffing cooked inside the bird every year as long as I can remember and obviously I’m still here to tell the tale. However, just because I’ve done something safely doesn’t mean that it is always safe. Do what you will and what feels right to you. If you cook the stuffing outside the bird and you want a bit more turkey flavor, take some of the basting liquid from the turkey and baste the stuffing halfway through cooking. You’ll get that turkey essence without having to worry about the safety of the stuffing. Plus, you’ll get some crunchy bits in the stuffing which, in my opinion, really enhances the dish.