Thanksgiving is almost here!

In our family, everyone contributes their best dishes to the turkey day dinner. My step-mom always cooks the turkey and gravy, and makes an awesome southern cornbread and sausage dressing - her father's recipe. I make dressing too, just a different kind (see recipe below). My mom makes a wonderful broccoli casserole, deviled eggs, and the pumpkin pies. I usually make a dessert as well, and often it's an English Trifle. I'll be posting that recipe tomorrow. My sister likes to make Brussels sprouts marinated in a sun-dried tomato vinaigrette...yummy! Then, of course, we always have sweet potatoes of some sort, mashed potatoes, and cranberry sauce. What are some of your favorite dishes for this holiday? Comment and let me know what your family's specialties are.

My Dressing

This is pretty forgiving, but you will need to taste as you go.

Ingredients

• cornbread, prepared and baked in 13 x 9 pan (I use two boxes of Jiffy corn muffin mix, prepared as directed for Johnny Cake), crumbled into chunks onto a sheet pan and lightly toasted
  
• 1 loaf French or Italian bread, (crust on or off, you decide) cubed and toasted
• 1 1/2 sticks of butter
  
• 4 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 4-6 cups chicken stock or broth, low sodium
  
• 1 1/2 cups dried cherries
• rubbed sage, to taste
• salt and pepper. to taste

Directions

1. Place cherries in a small bowl, and cover with chicken stock. Let them soak a while.
   
2. Place all of your cornbread and French bread cubes in a very large bowl, mixing them together well. If necessary, use two bowls, but be sure to divide evenly.
3. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add celery and onions, and cook slowly until tender. Do not brown the vegetables.
   
4. Once the vegetables have softened, you want to add the seasonings to the skillet. I start with 1 teaspoon of sage, one tablespoon of salt, a 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. It will taste strong, but remember, there is a LOT of bread to soak up those flavors. And, this is just a starting point.
   
5. Drain the cherries, and add them to the skillet mixture, stir well.
6. Pour the skillet mixture over the bread (remember to divide evenly if using two bowls). Mix well.
7. Now, we'll start adding the stock, a little at a time. Start with 1 1/2 cups, pouring it over the dressing, and stirring to incorporate. Keep adding stock until the dressing is sufficiently moist (This is also a matter of personal preference, some like a loose, almost batter-like consistency. I like mine moist, but still be able to identify all the ingredients).
8. This is the time to taste. Make sure you get a little bit of everything on your spoon. Adjust the seasonings to your liking, and be sure to mix well.
9. Pour into a greased casserole dish (it may take two dishes to hold it all), and bake alongside your turkey until heated through and evenly browned on top, about 45 minutes.
   

I always make mine a day ahead, and let it sit, covered in the fridge until time to bake it.