RUDY's STUFFING (a 3 banana difficulty level)

A little over a month ago, my old high school friend & golfing buddy Rudy sent me a Thanksgiving Stuffing recipe that he raved about.  I decided to give it a go for Thanksgiving this week.  Now Rudy did warn me that it contained a fair amount of butter.  And by "fair amount" I mean 2 STICKS OF BUTTER.  Sorry Rudy, I had to cut this back to just a 1 stick.  I figured with the 1 lb of bulk sausage in there as well, we would have an abundance of good flavor.

Stuffing is definitely a matter of preference.  Do you call it "dressing" or "stuffing?"; Do you like it "dry" or "moist?";  What the heck goes in there anyway?  There's a lot of ways to go here.

Anyway, here's the 'anymonkeycan' version of Rudy's version of stuffing!

WHAT YOU NEED:
1 Loaf of hearty White Sandwich Bread (Rudy's Rec: Sourdough) cut in 1/2" cubes
1 lb bulk Pork Sausage
1 Red Onion - finely chopped
2 Celery Stalks - finely chopped
2 Carrots - finely chopped (optional)
1 c Dried Cranberries (optional)
1 Stick of Butter
2 Eggs
2-3 c Chicken Stock
2 T Fresh Rosemary - minced
2 T Fresh Fennel - minced
1 t Ground Pepper or to taste
2 t Kosher Salt or to taste

WHAT ELSE YOU NEED:
9x13" Baking Dish
Large Bowl

WHAT YOU DO:
1.  Cut the Bread in 1/2" cubes, spread into single layer on a cookie sheet and cover with a towel. LEAVE OUT OVER NIGHT...or heat oven to 250 deg and place the bread cubes (NO TOWEL COVERING!!) on the cookie sheet in the oven for 45-60 min.

2.  Pre Heat oven to 350 deg.
3.  In a large Skillet on Medium High heat, cook the Bulk Sausage breaking the sausage into pieces until fully cooked.  About 6-7 min.

4. Remove the Sausage from the Skillet. Reduce Heat to Medium and add the butter. Saute & Stir occasionally, the Onions, Celery, & Carrots until the vegetables are softened. Add the Cranberries at the 5 min mark. About 8-10 min total.

5. Add the Rosemary & Fennel. Saute for another 30 seconds.
6.  Combine the Bread Cubes & Sausage in a 9x13" Baking Dish

7. In a Large Bowl, whisk the Eggs then add the 2 c Chicken Stock & Salt & Pepper.  Add the Celery/Carrots/Onions/Cranberries
8. Pour the contents of Large Bowl over the Bread/Sausage in the 9x13" dish.  If you like Moist Stuffing, add the extra cup of Stock (or water) so that the bread is soggy/soupy

9.  Cover with Aluminum Foil & Bake for 35 minutes at 350 deg.
10.  Uncover, Bake for another 10-15 minutes.
11.  Enjoy!

So there you have it, Rudy's Stuffing.  This really is quite tasty.  I can only imagine how decadently tasty this would be if I had gone with the 2 sticks of butter.  Next time I'll probably omit the carrots or cut them even smaller.  They still provided a bit of a crunch that I could have done without. 

Here's another Rudy Rec before we go.  Add the Stuffing to the inside of a thick, butterflied pork chop. 

Thanks again, Rudy and until next time, your favorite neighbor web Monkey!