Ingredients
12 cups cornbread, crumbled and dried
10 tablespoons butter, soft
3 cups celery, chopped
2 small onions, finely diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 red peppers, finely diced
4 oz dried porcini mushrooms
16 oz frozen corn
4 eggs, beaten
6 cups chicken stock*
2 tablespoons fresh sage, chopped
½ teaspoon nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste
Preparation
Preheat oven to 375º, and butter one 7x11x2 glass baking dish with 1 tablespoon of butter.
Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet. Start by gently sweating the onions. After the onions turn translucent, add the garlic, and then the red pepper and celery. Let them cook until all of the vegetables are soft.
Meanwhile, re-hydrate the porcini by heating two cups of the broth until simmering, and cooking the porcini in the broth for one minute. Remove the mushrooms; wring them out by squeezing them in your hand, then dice.
Add the nutmeg and sage to the pan with the cooked vegetables and cook for 5 more minutes, and add the two cups of chicken stock used to re-hydrate the mushrooms and deglaze the pan.
Combine the cornbread, cooked vegetable mixture, porcini, eggs, and corn into a large bowl. Slowly mix in remaining stock until you reach a consistency that looks slightly more moist than you would like the stuffing to be served.
Pour the mixture into the prepared glass baking dish and spread remaining butter over the top of the dressing.
Bake for 1 hour until it forms a nice crust.
