The Basics: How to Make Apple and Sage Stuffing

Fresh flavors, no box for Thanksgiving

From the store to the kitchen to the table: We outline the steps that get you from raw ingredients to your dinner tonight, free of measurements and complicated techniques. It’s a method you’ll remember and whip out whenever you like. It is the most basic way to make the thing you’re making.

WHAT YOU’LL DO:

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• 1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit (it will take at least 20 minutes to warm up) and coat the baking dish with butter.

  

• 2. Slice the crust off the bread, cut the loaf into bite-sized cubes, and place the cubes in the bowl. Chop the onions, apples, and celery stalks into medium-size pieces. Chop a generous handful of sage and the leaves from about eight sprigs of thyme.

  

• 3. Melt the half stick of butter in the saucepan over medium-high heat until foaming. Add the onions and cook until they’re just starting to brown. Add the apples, celery, and herbs and cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples are tender and easily pierced with a knife.

  

• 4. Add about a cup of stock or broth and bring the mixture to a simmer.

  

• 5. Turn the heat off and add the vegetable-apple mixture to the bread cubes. Season with two or three generous pinches of salt and a generous pinch of pepper, and mix well.

  

• 6. Dump the bread mixture into the baking dish and bake until the top of the stuffing just starts to brown, about 30 to 40 minutes. See more Thanksgiving Basics.