4 Servings

Ingredients

• 1 baguette, cubed into ½” pieces and left out to dry/stale
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
• 6 ounces Italian sausage
• 1 medium onion diced
• 2 ribs celery, diced
• 14 dried mission figs, quartered
• 2 tablespoons thyme
• 1 tablespoon thinly sliced chives
• 2 ½ cups warm chicken stock or vegetable stock
• Salt and pepper to taste

Steps

• Preheat oven to 375˚F.
• Pour bread cubes into a large mixing bowl and set aside.
• Melt 2 tbsp butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add sausage, brown and crumble for 2–3 minutes. Drain with a slotted spoon and pour sausage over the bread cubes.
• Melt remaining butter into the skillet and add onion and celery. Saute for 4–5 minutes or until onion and celery becomes translucent. Season with salt and pepper. Add figs and continue to sauté for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in thyme and chives.
• Remove mixture from heat and pour over bread cube mixture. Toss mixture together before pouring warm stock over the top. Fold mixture together until no dry spots remain and everything is well mixed.
• Allow mixture to sit for about 6–8 minutes so any excess liquid can absorb into the mixture. Adjust seasonings if needed.
• Place mixture into a lightly greased 9”x13” baking dish and cover with foil. Bake for 25–30 minutes, uncover, and continue to bake for about 5 minutes.
• Remove stuffing from the oven and allow mixture to cool for about 10 minutes before serving.
• From Teri Lyn Fisher, @spoonforkbacon