ADELINE'S TURKEY DRESSING

Thanksgiving was THE very favorite holiday meal at our house and the same menu was often repeated for Christmas, as well. One of my earliest memories is watching Mother put the stuffing, which we called dressing, together. She had perfected this long before I was born. In those days you bought loaves of unsliced bread for making dressing. I don't know why, because it seemed just like any ordinary white bread, but you had to slice it yourself before cubing it. Now I use any old white bread in the store....the mushier, the better.

Turkeys back then were mostly fresh so you could easily cook the giblits and make the dressing the day ahead. This was a big help if you were roasting a large bird and eating dinner in the middle of the day since the cook had to be up so early to get that bird in the oven. Frank was a swing shift worker and so he was likely to be working on the holiday. If, by chance, it was his day off, we might have a house full of family and friends. But, if he was working that day, he might be getting home at breakfast time from the night shift, leaving at 2p.m. for the 3-11 shift or working from 9-5. However, no matter what his shift, we always had a Thanksgiving dinner even if it had to be on a different day of the week to fit with his work schedule. A dear friend's mother once asked him if he disliked having to work on most holidays and his reply was, "Money can be so soothing!"


1 lb. bulk breakfast sausage (Jimmy Dean or Bob Evans brands are both good)
1 large loaf white bread, cubed
3 stalks celery (tops included), chopped
1 lg. onion, chopped
1/2 c. fresh parsley. chopped
1/4 c. butter
1/2 can evaporated milk
2 eggs
1 1/2 Tbs. poultry seasoning (Bell's brand, preferably)
1 tsp.salt
pepper to taste
pre-cooked giblit and neck meat, chopped (season with salt and bay leaf during cooking)
1 1/2 cups cooking juice from giblits (or pre-made chicken broth)

Rinse and then simmer the gibits/neck meat found inside the turkey in enough water to cover until the meats are tender (30-45 mi.). The liver will be done before the rest, so remove it as soon as it is tender. Set aside the broth and chop the meat.when it is cool enough to handle. Brown and crumble the sausage in a large saucepan. Remove the meat from the pan and sweat the chopped vegetables in the pan fat, stirring continually. Continue to simmer until they are tender....about 5 minutes. Return the sausage to the pan, add the giblits cooking juice and simmer for a few minutes. Add the butter, and set asid to cool.

Whisk together the eggs, evaporated milk, and seasonings in a small bowl. Combine this with the cooled meat/veg mixture. Add this along with the giblit/neck meat to the cubed bread in a large bowl. Stir lightly until they are well mixed. The dressing should be moist but not drippy wet. You can add more liquid if it's too dry and more bread if it's too wet (depending on how dense the bread happens to be). Taste for seasoning and adjust with more poultry seasoning, salt or pepper. If you are making this ahead, refrigerate the dressing.

Lightly pack the bird's cavities, which you have rinsed and dried with paper towels. Extra dressing can be baked in a casserole dish for 30-40 minutes (uncovered) or until the top is nicely browned.

Roast the bird according to the package directions (I like to start the oven temperature at 425 degrees for 30 minutes and than reduce the heat to 350 for the remaining time). REMEMBER NEVER STUFF THE TURKEY THE DAY BEFORE YOU ROAST IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This dressing is great with pork and chicken, so double the recipe while you are at it! Freeze the excess in zip-lock style bags and flatten the dressing in the bag. It will stack better and thaw faster when you are ready to use it.