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Name:	Mack -	Reply
Subject:	Cornbread Dressing ,,, Not Stuffing??
Date:	12/12/2011 7:01:49 PM

My Mother is no longer able to make the "Dressing" for the Holidays, and that fact marks a sad day in my family. Nuff said. My nephew's squeeze volunteered to make dressing for this Thanksgiving, she did, and it was OK. She gets mucho credit for putting her neck on the block in that situation. Was not Momma Nem's, but good.
Looking for a traditional Dressing Recipe that is heavy on onion, very moist, textured with cornmeal rather than bread (slick/slimy), and seasoned to accompany other traditional items on the table.
You see, sadly, Momma Nem did not make their dressing with a written recipe??
Thanks, and a Merry Christmas to you all. Cook On!!

Name:	roswellric -	Reply
Subject:	Cornbread Dressing ,,, Not Stuffing??
Date:	12/12/2011 9:22:52 PM

Same deal for me. I miss my mom. She loved making this recipe that was her signature dish for Thanksgiving and Christmas...or anytime a turkey appeared. I'm glad I got her to dictate it to me since it was never in writing. I wrote this up for my kids as best I could.

Opal V''s Cornbread Dressing

2-Medium to large onions – quartered (she said 1 real large)

5-Stalks celery, sectioned

3-cups chicken/turkey stock (canned ok - she used turkey giblets & neck to make a stock for this and gravy)

2 ½ cups self-rising cornmeal (mix?) white

9-Eggs (yes, 9)

1-Tbs vegetable oil

Milk

2-tsp poultry seasoning

1-tsp sage

2-tsp each salt & pepper

4-5 slices white bread

God knows what else!

1. Make the Stock: Simmer the first 3 items until well cooked (she said very tender)

2. Make the Cornbread: Cut 1 Tbs. oil into the cornmeal, beat 3 eggs in 1 cup of milk and add to the cornmeal to get a cornbread consistency. Bake at 450° for 25-30 minutes until done.

3. Make the Dressing Mix: Crumble and crush cornbread into a large bowl. Add 4-5 slices of torn-up white bread. Mix in enough stock, including the mushy onions and celery to make a thick soupy consistency. Mix well with an electric mixer, add 6 eggs, poultry seasoning, salt & pepper and mix well.

4. Bake it! : Cook at 350° in a casserole or glass dish ½ hour covered and then ½ - ¾ hour uncovered until the top feels firm.

Name:	Little Talisi -	Reply
Subject:	Cornbread Dressing ,,, Not Stuffing??
Date:	12/13/2011 12:16:30 AM

My children say that this is as close to their Grandma's as any:

Cornbread Dressing

1 cup butter, divided
3 cups self-rising white cornmeal mix
1 cup all-purpose flour
7 large eggs, divided
3 cups buttermilk

3 cups soft, white breadcrumbs
2 large sweet onions, diced
4 celery ribs, diced
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh sage
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon seasoned pepper
7 cups chicken broth

Place 1/2 cup butter in a 13- x 9-inch pan; heat in oven at 425° for 4 minutes.

Stir together cornmeal and flour; whisk in 3 eggs and buttermilk.

Pour hot butter into batter, and stir until blended. Pour batter into pan.

Bake at 425° for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Cool. Crumble cornbread into a large bowl; stir in breadcrumbs, and set aside.

Melt remaining 1/2 cup butter in a skillet over medium heat; add onions and celery, and sauté 5 minutes. Stir in sage, parsley, and seasoned pepper; sauté 1 minute. Remove from heat, and stir into cornbread mixture.

Whisk together chicken broth and remaining 4 eggs; stir into cornbread mixture. Pour evenly into 1 lightly greased 13- x 9-inch pan and 1 lightly greased 8-inch square pan.

Bake at 400° for 35 to 40 minutes or until golden brown.

Yield: Makes 16 to 18 servings

Name:	BigFoot -	Reply
Subject:	Cornbread Dressing ,,, Not Stuffing??
Date:	12/13/2011 2:45:44 PM (updated 12/13/2011 2:46:21 PM)

Thanks rr and talisi for posting these recipes...for some reason, I am now really hungry for cornbread dressing!

Name:	roswellric -	Reply
Subject:	Don't forget....
Date:	12/13/2011 4:12:18 PM

the dressing, turkey, cranberry sauce and giblet gravy....all piled on a couple of slices of white bread......Whooooooeeeee!

Name:	Mack -	Reply
Subject:	I Forget Sometimes that>>>
Date:	12/13/2011 7:26:17 PM

a Thanksgiving Feast meal is available year round, except for sweet potatoes and fresh pecans for the sweet potato casserole. But, my family never indulges except during the holidays. Gotta' correct that.
Thanks for your recipes. They are similar to what I observed with my Mom. But, she never used eggs at all in the dressing. I remember her making fresh cornbread, crumbling it up in a huge bowl, adding "stale" bread (not much), adding a "mountain of sauteed onion in butter", adding the broth, salt and pepper, again salt and pepper, taste,,,,,
Enough onions, she asks. No.Add more!! 400* for about 45 minutes in several 9x13 dishes. Gravy,, UGH!! Good.
Question?? Most recipes call for eggs. Would the eggs give an otherwise "cornbread" texture a smoother/less course Bread Pudding Texture? Serious.

Name:	willallie -	Reply
Subject:	I Forget Sometimes that>>>
Date:	12/13/2011 8:52:30 PM

My family loves the bread dressing...just a little cornmeal. I am like many of you that never had to make it ..until recently. My mother has always said, a little of this, some of that, and taste.. We have done that and never achieved her "dressing" for seveal years. Unfortunately I don't think we will even get close to our mothers/grandmothers dressing. Any thoughts?

Name:	roswellric -	Reply
Subject:	I Forget Sometimes that>>>
Date:	12/13/2011 10:32:18 PM

Maybe your mom hid the eggs :-) .... I never heard of a dressing recipe that didn't inclued them but maybe so. The eggs in my mother's recipe made it lighter but not all the way to souffle. You have to try it to see if you like it. Everyone has their own memories....so go for it and see!

Name:	Talullahhound -	Reply
Subject:	The Eggs
Date:	12/13/2011 11:21:14 PM

I think the purpose of the eggs is to kind of hold it together. Otherwise you'd likely just end up with a bunch of moist, seasoned crumbs. I am fascinated with the notion that people combine bread and cornmeal. I've always just thought that cornmeal dressing was just made with cornbread. I've only had my MIL's and I have to say, I didn't much care for it. Now, seeing all these recipes makes me want to experiment.

Name:	Little Talisi -	Reply
Subject:	The Eggs
Date:	12/14/2011 7:49:47 AM

The eggs and the bread crumbs are to hold it together. Now if you want a little change (my children don't) add a pint of oysters to the mix or some pecans and dried cranberries.

Name:	roswellric -	Reply
Subject:	The Eggs
Date:	12/14/2011 10:37:48 AM (updated 12/14/2011 10:39:43 AM)

Not as weird as you might think. Cornbread mix is actually a combination of the cornmeal and flour. I would guess that the addition of the white bread adds the developed gluten of the flour in the bread giving it a better texture.

Name:	Maverick -	Reply
Subject:	Cornbread Dressing ,,, Not Stuffing??
Date:	12/14/2011 11:22:50 AM

Mack, same with us. So about 4 years ago we began to recreate my Mother In Laws Cornbread Dressing Recipe and the following is our recipe: - 1 Cup Chopped Onions - 1 Cup Chopped Celery - 6 Cups Crumbled Corn Bread - 3 Cups Crumbled Stale or Toasted White Bread - 1 tsp Poultry Seasoning - 1 tsp Salt - 3 Eggs Well Beaten - 2 Cans Chicken Broth - 1 Can Cream of Chicken Soup - 2 Fully Cooked Shredded Skinless Chicken Breasts Saute onions in butter until tender, but not brown. Repeat with celery. Heat Stock. Combine all ingredients, then add stock and mix well. Place in greased 9 x 13 casserole dish and bake at 350 for 40 minutes or until nicely browned.

Name:	Tall Cotton -	Reply
Subject:	Cornbread Dressing ,,, Not Stuffing??
Date:	12/14/2011 2:27:32 PM

My Mom puts the onions and celery in the cornbread. She would make extra because she knew as soon as it came out of the oven I would cut a big chunk to eat. She let that cool and then crumbled it up with poultry seasoning and sage, moistened it with turkey drippings from the oven, put it in a 9X13 pan and baked it until there was some crust on top. If you add enough moisture you don't need eggs as a binder. My MIL uses Pepperidge Farms cornbread and regular bread croutons and adds onion, celery, seasonings, and chicken broth and pecans. They're both good, but I like my Mom's better.

Name:	Talullahhound -	Reply
Subject:	Some things we never get over
Date:	12/14/2011 3:30:11 PM

Isn't it funny that everyone wants to make the same dressing that their Mother's or Grandmother's made? It's like the perfect dressing exists in our minds, and it is always the one we grew up eating.

Name:	rah -	Reply
Subject:	Some things we never get over
Date:	12/14/2011 8:52:32 PM

For an old fashioned dressing try this one. 4cups cornbread. Allow it to get dry. 4 cups white bread allowed to dry. 2 and one half cups celery (chopped). One forth cup onion (chopped). One bunch green onion (chopped) Include green tops. One third stick margarine. 3 hard boiled eggs( grated fine). Salt and pepper. Chicken broth. Crumble corn bread and white bread. Saute celery and onion in margarine. Add grated eggs and salt and pepper to taste. Add enough chicken broth to make mixture very moist. Bake at 350 until set. The secret to good dressing is the quality of the stock. Canned stock makes a bland dressing. Homemade stock makes all the difference. I like a good bit of salt and pepper. Taste it before you cook it to correct seasoning . Since there are no raw eggs you can safely taste it. I like to use hamburger or hotdog buns for the white bread. I also always double it at least.

Name:	Lifer -	Reply
Subject:	Cornbread Dressing ,,, Not Stuffing??
Date:	12/15/2011 2:24:35 PM

All of these recipes sound great. I know how my mom made ours fortunately and have made it myself on a few occasions. Only a couple of differences. She always made cornbread 2-3 days ahead of time for two purposes. She claimed it made it better and also was one less thing to do in the rush of final meal prep. As some of you experiment, try adding some nutmeg to taste. Mom also would add chopped up boiled egg sometimes and would sprinkle sage lightly across the top before final baking.

Good luck. I think I will make some for a neighborhood gathering on Sunday.

Name:	Pontoonfisher -	Reply
Subject:	Cornbread Dressing ,,, Not Stuffing??
Date:	12/16/2011 10:54:58 AM

Maverick's recipe looks to be the closest to the traditional cornbread dressing. I don't know about the 9 egg recipe. 9 eggs seams excessive. For a nice twist try adding some hot breakfast sausage to Mav's recipe (the kind that comes in a roll).

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