The holidays will soon be here so I have been trying out new recipes to bring in the season. Although stuffing is appreciated any time of the year, it graces most tables during the holidays. I absolutely love eating stuffing! I usually cut back on eating breads and sweets well in advance of Thanksgiving just so I can pig out on my mom’s cornbread stuffing.
This Thanksgiving I thought I would give my mom a run for her money and make a stuffing that had fewer calories but was still full of flavor. I came up with the idea of a sweet potato stuffing while shopping at Trader Joe’s and saw a big display of Pumpkin Cornbread Croutons. The thought of sweet potatoes and pumpkin just seemed like a natural combination.
The great thing about this recipe is that it very basic. As I have said on other occasions keeping it simple usually works best. I found the croutons provided a lot of spice so there was no need to add a lot of other seasonings. Salt, pepper and nutmeg was all that was needed to bring out the wonderful deep flavors of sweet potato and pumpkin.
As usual, I used my family as guinea pigs to try out this new dish. I served the stuffing with pork chops and greens beans and had smiles all around. So, this Thanksgiving there will be extra stuffing on the table. We just won’t tell my mom.
Sweet Potato Stuffing with Pumpkin Croutons
Ingredients:
8 oz pumpkin cornbread croutons (Trader Joe’s)
1 medium onion diced
2 stalks celery diced
2 sweet potatoes peeled and cubed
1 cup chicken broth
4 tbsp butter
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
½ tsp nutmeg
cooking spray
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Melt 3 tbsp of butter in a medium non-stick frying pan. Add onions, celery, salt and pepper.. Saute until veggies are soft. Set aside.
Spray a rimmed cookie sheet with cooking spray. Place sweet potatoes on a cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat. Roast for 25 – 30 minutes until sweet potatoes are tender and golden.
In large bowl add croutons, sweet potatoes, celery and onions. Gradually, add chicken broth to stuffing mix until croutons are softened and stuffing is well blended. Place mixture in a greased casserole dish. Dot the top with remaining butter. Bake for 30 minutes.
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