Croissant + Italian Cornbread Dressing
We took cornbread dressing with our latest recipe and gave it an Italian flair. Give this Croissant + Italian Cornbread Dressing a try this holiday season.
Servings: 6
Ingredients
- * pan of cornbread crumbled
- * 8 ounces croissants cut into 1-inch cubes or pulsed in a food processor
- * 3 tablespoons rubbed or ground sage
- * 2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
- * 1 tablespoon fennel seed
- *1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- * 1 tablespoon old bay seasoning
- * 2 teaspoons freshly cracked black peppercorns
- * 1 large yellow onion
- * 1 small red bell pepper
- * 1 small yellow bell pepper
- * 1 small orange bell pepper
- 1 celery stalk
- * 5 cloves of garlic minced
- * 1 cup dried cranberries
- * 1/2 stick melted unsalted butter
- * 4 celery sticks thinly sliced
- * 3 cups chicken stock
- * 6 ounces chopped salame
- * 6 ounces chopped prosciutto
- * 1 cup browned Italian sausage
- For the top of the dressing: 1 stick melted butter mixed with 1 tablespoon rubbed sage 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning, 1 teaspoon fennel seeds, and 1 teaspoon freshly cracked black peppercorns. Drizzle mixture on top of the dressing just before baking in a preheated 350° F oven for 45 minutes.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Pour two boxes of Jiffy cornbread mix into a bowl. Add 1/2 pint of full-fat buttermilk, one cup of whole milk, and 1 cup of yellow cornmeal. Don't forget to add one tablespoon each of celery seed and ground or rubbed sage.
- As the cornbread is baking, prep and sauté the onions, peppers, celery, and garlic, then set aside.
- Use a serrated knife, cut the croissant into one-inch cubes, and set aside. Or, if you prefer a more breadcrumb style, put the croissants into the food processor and make croissant breadcrumbs.
- Into a large bowl, crumble the cornbread and add the sautéed vegetables, seasoning, and half of the chopped uncured salame, prosciutto, and browned Italian sausage.
- Brush melted unsalted butter or extra virgin olive oil. Brush the bottom and along the sides of a baking dish.
- Spoon the cornbread mixture into the prepared baking dish, add three cupfuls of chicken or vegetable stock, and mix well.
- Add the croissants and the remaining meat; make sure to distribute the meat over the top of the dressing equally.
- Drizzle melted unsalted herb butter (recipe above) over the top of the croissant topping.
- Place the dressing onto the middle rack of the 350°F oven, place a sheet of aluminum foil over the top of the dressing shiny side up, and bake for 45-50 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and allow the dressing to cool for ten minutes.
- Serve.