I am so blessed to have my friend Dennis in my life. I met Dennis so many years ago in Manhattan. Being a hillbilly in a city, I sure stuck out like a sour thumb. Dennis was always just so kind and so funny. A great guy to hang out with. Dennis lives in California with his partner, Marcos. It makes my heart so full to know he is loved and happy. Always blessed to call him a friend.
I wanted to add a little sweet note that Dennis just left me
We live such a fast and quick life that sometimes we never realize the love and kindness that we leave as markers of our lives. Thanks for being part of that, Dennis.
I did a recipe swap in my room in Face Book and Dennis offered to share his dressing recipe. I have been waiting.. so here it is..
Couldn't wait to share this with everyone. A little bit more work, but so worth it. I will be trying it soon. Every time I get everything I find I am missing something. Please if you give it a try holler and let us all know.
Dennis’ Chorizo and Cornbread Dressing
Ingredients
1 pound of Mexican chorizo
1 onion diced or chopped
1 or 2 carrots diced or chopped
1 or 2 ribs of celery diced or chopped
3-6 cloves of garlic minced or diced
2-4 cups of crumbled cornbread
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro (1/4 cup or less if using dried cilantro)
½-1 cup of chicken or turkey broth
Cooking spray/butter/vegetable oil
Cooking Instructions
Preheat oven to 350.
Coat a casserole dish or baking pan with cooking spray, vegetable oil or butter. Set aside.
Heat a large skillet to medium then add the chorizo either by crumbling with your hands or breaking it up with a strong spatula. Stir and break apart until it is browned (approximately 5-8 minutes). Makes sure the sausage is in little pieces and not huge chunks.
Remove the chorizo with a slotted spoon/spatula to retain most of the chorizo juice in the pan. Place the cooked chorizo in a bowl and top with aluminum foil (to retain the moisture).
Add the vegetables (onion, celery, carrots and garlic) to the chorizo juice and cook until slightly tender (about 7-11 minutes depending on how finely the vegetables are diced). Add a little cooking spray, butter or vegetable oil if there is not adequate chorizo juice to properly cook the vegetables.
Gradually add the crumbled cornbread and cilantro.
Slowly pour in the broth making sure to add enough to make the mixture slightly wet, but not mushy.
Add in the chorizo. Stir, and cautiously add additional broth if needed.
Transfer the mixture to your greased casserole dish/baking pan and spread to an even layer.
Pop in the oven uncovered and bake until heated and a light brown crust begins to develop on the top. This should take about 20-30 minutes.
Either serve immediately or cover with foil to retain the moisture.
Tips
Chorizo – use a high quality, pork chorizo for best results. I bought some cheap beef chorizo in the past and when I cooked it, all I got was an oily mush.
Cornbread – hot, fresh and very moist cornbread may be delicious with your morning coffee, but it does not work well for this recipe. I cook my cornbread the day before and let it sit covered until Thanksgiving Day. This way the cornbread is a little moist and tasty, but dry enough to crumble for the recipe. One box of Jiffy brand cornbread mix should be fine, but I always bake two packages together just in case. Then I enjoy the remaining cornbread with butter and coffee!
Vegetables and garlic – the amount you add depends on your preferences and tastes. I have a friend whose husband is anti-vegetable. So my friend dices the vegetables very fine so that when they cook and are added to the cornbread, his husband has no idea they are there! Fortunately, we love vegetables in our home, so I chop them roughly and add a lot.
Dressing versus stuffing – I usually make this recipe as a side dish (dressing). You could stuff your turkey with the mixture, but I would make sure the mixture is very dry…..as the juices from the turkey will turn the mixture wet. The last thing you want is a mushy mess coming out of your bird.
Leftovers – when serving this as leftovers, feel free to add some gravy and/or broth to the dressing. This will keep it wet and flavorful.
Storing – aluminum foil or sealed plastic containers are great tools to keep dishes moist. When storing leftover dressing, refrigerate in either a sealed plastic container or the original baking dish covered in aluminum foil.
Creativity – the dressing may be used creatively over the next few days to increase taste, texture and function for other dishes. For example when making turkey sandwiches, add a dollop of cranberry sauce and a big scoop of chorizo/cornbread dressing. It will add a kick for sure.
Spicy – The dish should be just spicy enough if you are using a high quality chorizo. But if it is not or you really like your food with a spicy kick, chop up a Serrano chili and add while cooking the vegetables.
Living your best life and doing what feels good for you is the secret.
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