Pear Fennel Stuffing with Sage and Pancetta
With a handful of fresh herbs and plenty of butter, this homemade pear fennel stuffing is the easy side dish every holiday dinner needs.
Servings 8 servings
Ingredients
- 1 large loaf challah bread, diced into ½ inch cubes (see note)
- ½ cup (4 ounces) diced pancetta
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 3 stalks celery, diced small
- 1 fennel bulb, diced small
- 8 ounces baby bella mushrooms, diced (or 1 pound, stems only & caps reserved for other use)
- 2 tablespoons sage, minced
- 1 cup other mixed herbs, minced with stems removed (I used thyme, marjoram, and rosemary)
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 tablespoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 2-3 cups chicken or vegetable stock
- 1 bosc pear, pitted and diced
Instructions
Prepare the Vegetable-Herb Mixture
- In a large pan over medium heat, sauté the pancetta until the fat is just rendered. Remove the pancetta to a plate with a slotted spoon, reserving 1 tablespoon grease in the pan.
- Melt a tablespoon of butter along with the grease, and sweat the celery and fennel in the pan until soft and semi-translucent (about 10 minutes). Add the mushroom, fresh herbs, salt, and pepper and continue to sauté until the mushroom are browned and all the flavors have mingled (8-10 minutes). Stir in the pancetta and the cayenne pepper. Remove the pan from heat and let the mixture cool.
- If making the entire recipe in one day, you can move on to the next steps. Otherwise, transfer the vegetable mix to the fridge overnight. This is my preferred method.
Mix Together All Ingredients
- Use 1 tablespoon of butter to grease an oven safe casserole dish (make sure its large enough to fit all of the bread crumbs). Stir the chopped pear into the cooked vegetable mixture.
- Sprinkle a layer of bread crumbs into the bottom of the casserole dish, followed by a layer of vegetable mixture, and a splash of stock. Stir to combine. Continue this process until all of the bread and vegetable mixture are mixed and the bread is just moist from the stock, but not soaking wet. (You can also mix together all of the ingredients in a large bowl before transferring to the casserole dish, but I try to avoid making extra dishes to wash whenever possible.)
- Melt the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter. Drizzle this over the top of the stuffing casserole.
Bake the Stuffing
- If baking alongside turkey, chickens, or another large roast: butter a sheet of parchment paper and lay this directly on top of the stuffing. Cover with foil and bake at whatever temperature your roast requires right alongside. Once the roast is removed to rest, uncover the stuffing and bake for an additional 20-30 minutes at 375 degrees F.
- If baking ahead or alone in the oven: Follow above, but bake covered at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes, and then uncovered at 375 degrees F for an additional 30 minutes.
- The stuffing is finished when fully cooked through and the top is golden. Let the dish rest for 10 minutes, and then serve.
Notes
Fresh vs. Stale Bread: Most stuffing recipes will recommend using stale bread. This is because stale bread will keep its shape and better absorb all the wonderful juices of the stock and vegetables. If, like me, you never think to buy your ingredients that far ahead, you can easily dry fresh bread out overnight. Just dice to the appropriate size, spread out on a baking sheet, and let sit uncovered in a safe place (I hide mine above the fridge where the cats won't find them). They’ll be just right by the time you make your stuffing the next day.
Split Up the Work: The vegetable mixture can be prepared and sauteed the day before and stored in the fridge overnight. I prefer this method, and think the time improves the overall flavor.
Mushroom Caps & Stems: If you are making stuffing alongside a gravy, the traditional method is to use diced stems in the stuffing and mushroom caps in the gravy. You could also make a stuffed mushroom appetizer with the caps. This is mostly for appearance reasons though, so if you are only making the stuffing and not trying to do anything else fancy, just dice up a package of mushrooms, caps and all.
Split Up the Work: The vegetable mixture can be prepared and sauteed the day before and stored in the fridge overnight. I prefer this method, and think the time improves the overall flavor.
Mushroom Caps & Stems: If you are making stuffing alongside a gravy, the traditional method is to use diced stems in the stuffing and mushroom caps in the gravy. You could also make a stuffed mushroom appetizer with the caps. This is mostly for appearance reasons though, so if you are only making the stuffing and not trying to do anything else fancy, just dice up a package of mushrooms, caps and all.