Southwest Cornbread and Chorizo Stuffing

Posted on Nov 23, 2010 by PeggyPrint Recipe Only | Email Recipe | Leave a Comment
Filed under: All Recipes, Fall, Other hot sides, Pork, Winter Pin It
Cornbread and Chorizo Stuffing

This Spanish-styled stuffing is this year’s break from traditional stuffing (think sage and bread crumbs). The smoky flavors of Spanish paprika, chorizo and cornbread were a marvelous punctuation to the components in our traditional Thanksgiving plate (think turkey, mashed potatoes, green beans and cranberry sauce).

Corn bread can be made and toasted up to 48 hours in advance. Stuffing mixture may be prepared up to 1 day ahead; add broth and egg just before baking.

Chorizo sausage varies considerably according to the butcher’s recipe. I purchased mine from Bob Sparrow in Kerrytown. He uses smoked paprika in his recipe, so I found 1 tablespoon of additional smoked paprika was all that was needed for the stuffing. Additionally, the heat in his chorizo was perfect to satisfy the heat component, so I did not add additional pepper of any sort.

This will be perfect with a turkey rubbed in a Southwest seasoning blend and my Southwest Butternut Squash and Apple Soup.

Recipe: Cornbread and Chorizo Stuffing

Ingredients

  • 1 recipe for cornbread* to yield 8-10 cups cubed bread
  • 1 tablespoon light oil, such as vegetable, canola or corn oil
  • 2 cups chopped onion or leeks
  • 2 cups chopped celery
  • 1 1/2 pounds uncooked chorizo sausage, casings removed and meat chopped
  • 2 tablespoons garlic
  • 1 tablespoon smoked Spanish paprika
  • 3 tablespoons tomato paste, sun-dried tomato paste preferred
  • 2 tablespoons parsley
  • 2 cups chicken or turkey stock
  • 2 large eggs

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Cut the cornbread into 1/2-inch pieces and spread them out in a single layer on 2 sheet pans. Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes, or bread is golden brown, switching positions of the pans and stirring the bread about halfway through. Cool and transfer to a large bowl. (This can be done up to 48 hours in advance.) Transfer bread cubes to a large mixing bowl.
  3. Heat the olive oil in a large non-stick frying pan. Add the onion or leeks and celery. Cook over low heat, stirring often, until vegetables just begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Stir in chorizo and garlic and sauté, stirring often to break down chorizo, until chorizo is just beginning to lose its pink color.
  4. Add the smoked paprika and tomato paste to pan and cook over medium-low heat for about 3 minutes.
  5. Toss chorizo mixture with the corn bread and parsley. Toss well to completely incorporate. Season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper.
  6. Whisk the chicken stock and eggs together in a small mixing bowl. Pour mixture over the stuffing and toss again to coat.
  7. Transfer stuffing to a large, lightly oiled baking dish and tightly cover with foil, coated with cooking oil or spray. Bake on middle rack of oven 50 minutes to one hour or until . Let rest for 10 minutes and serve.

*I baked the cornbread 48 hours before using. I let it dry out in the oven and at room temperature so they were more like large croutons. Use your favorite recipe or purchase ready-made corn bread. For simplicity, I used two 15-ounce boxes of Trader Joe’s cornbread mix. The result was a bit sweet for my taste, but, when combined with the spicy chorizo and smoked paprika, it was a nice counterpoint.

Active Time: 25 minutes

Bake Time: 50 minutes

Number of servings (yield): 12-16

Copyright © Peggy Lampman’s dinnerFeed.

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Filed under: All Recipes, Fall, Other hot sides, Pork, Winter
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