Cornbread Dressing

Cornbread Dressing

What's up world? Ya'll doing good? You good? You good? I'm good! You good? Okay, good! Now, I know the Holidays are pretty much over, but this recipe was originally supposed to be up BEFORE Thanksgiving, but due to other obligations, I never got around to it. I think learning to manage my time better will be a New Year's Resolution for me. 

It's not a complete loss, I mean, cornbread dressing isn't specifically made to be served during the Holiday's, it's just mainly served during the Holiday's.

Cornbread dressing is without a doubt one of my favorite side dishes. When I was younger, I always thought that Thanksgiving/Christmas was the only time you could have cornbread dressing. Again, cause that's is mainly when it is served. This recipe is a very basic dressing recipe that require little ingredients. 

First off, the cornbread. For this recipe, you can use your own cornbread recipe or you can buy any packaged cornbread from the store. I strongly recommend that you don't buy any of the sweet cornbread kind, but it is completely up to you.

Cornbread Recipe:
- 1 1/2 cups cornmeal
- 1/2 cup self-rising flour
- Pinch of sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
-1 tbsp. vegetable oil, plus more for skillet

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix together the corn meal, flour, and sugar. Add the egg, vegetable oil, and buttermilk and mix until all combined. Pour enough oil into the bottom of your cast iron skillet to cover the bottom. Pour the batter into the skillet and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until golden brown.

NOTES:
-You can also use cream of celery or cream of mushroom instead of cream of chicken. Make it your own.

-The amount of chicken broth you need is going to depend on the texture of your cornbread. When adding the chicken broth, make sure you add enough so that the ending result before you bake it is like a thick, but runny consistency.

For the Dressing:
-1 batch prepared cornbread
-2 eggs
-1 can cream of chicken
- *3 1/2 cups chicken broth
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1/2 cup chopped celery
- 2 tablespoons butter
- salt and pepper to taste
- ground sage (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large skillet, saute the onions and celery in the melted butter on a medium low heat for about five or six minutes. After five or six minutes remove the onions and celery from the skillet. With your clean hands, crumble the cooked cornbread into a bowl. Pour in enough chicken broth to moisten the cornbread liberally. Once you've added the chicken broth, add the can of cream of chicken and mix until everything is combined. Add in the onions and celery and season to taste with salt, pepper, and sage.Taste the dressing to see if it's seasoned enough and then mix in the eggs. Once everything is combined, pour the dressing batter into a greased casserole dish and bake for 45 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through.

I really hope you give this recipe a try. If you do, please let me know how you enjoyed it. Like always, the video for this recipe is below. Make sure to go over to YouTube and subscribe to my channel for video recipes (Devin Cooks). Thank you. See you next time.

Homemade Cranberry Sauce

Cook Time: 10-15 minutes

Makes about 3 cups of sauce

There's nothing like homemade cranberry sauce. I use to think that making cranberry was a difficult task, but it wasn't until a couple years ago when I tried making it myself and realized how easy it was. The first time I made cranberry sauce, I underestimated how tart cranberries can be, so I only added about 1/4 cup of sugar (I know that sounds ridiculous). I had a major surprise when I tasted. I had already cooked the cranberry sauce before I tasted it instead of tasting it before it was done. Major lesson learned. Anyway, I was able to add more sugar and fix the disaster.

Every since then I have had no trouble making cranberry sauce. My recipe is quick and simple, and is sure to please at your dinner table. It's really just a matter of putting everything in a pot and boiling it.

This cranberry sauce is just the way I like it. Not overly sweet and not too tart to where it tastes sour. You can adjust the ingredients in this recipe to fit your personal taste. If you prefer a more tart cranberry sauce, use a little less sugar than what's listed in the recipe. If you find my amount to be too little sugar, add more. Make this your own.

Notes:

 I've seen people use Pomegranate juice,apple juice, and even pineapple juice, so if that's what you prefer, use it. 

I had a few stubborn cranberries that just didn't want to pop, so if you encounter the same thing, just use a potato masher, or the back of your spoon to help crush them.

Cranberries have pectin in them that will thicken the sauce as it sits and cools down. There is no need to add any flour or cornstarch to thicken it.

If you don't like the cranberries in your sauce, while the sauce is still hot from the oven, run it through a strainer so that you are only left with the sauce and not the berries.

Ingredients:

- 1 (12 oz) package of fresh cranberries

- 2/3 cup cranberry juice

- Juice of a whole orange

- 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar

In a medium saucepan of medium heat place all four ingredients in, give them a stir to combine, and bring to a boil. Boil for about 10-15 minutes or until all the cranberries have popped, stirring to dissolve the sugar. After all the cranberries have popped, remove the sauce from the heat, and place in a heat-safe container to cool.

Homemade Cranberry Sauce. 

Recipe By: Devin Judkins

Store in refrigerator until ready to use. I really hope you enjoy this recipe and please remember to go over to YouTube and subscribe for video recipes. The video for this is recipe is below.