Guest Author - Linda Hamill

Old-Fashioned Bread Stuffing with Dried Apricots and Currants

This is a terrific stuffing for a Thanksgiving turkey, a roasted chicken, or Cornish game hens.

Makes 6 Servings

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 large shallots, minced
1 medium onion, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon sage
1/8 teaspoon cloves
1/8 teaspoon crushed rosemary
1/4 teaspoon marjoram
1/4 teaspoon savory
1/4 garlic salt
1/3 cup currants, chopped
1/4 cup celery, finely chopped
1/2 cup dried apricots, finely chopped
1/2 cup white wine
4 whole sourdough English muffins, toasted, cooled, torn into small bite size pieces*
vegetable broth, if needed

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. In large skillet(sprayed with Pam) heat oil over medium heat, add shallots, onion, and garlic. Cook and stir, until vegetables are golden. Stir in spices, currants, celery, and apricots. Cook, and stir, for 1 minute. Add wine and simmer until most but not all of the liquid evaporates. Otherwise you will have dry dressing. Remove from heat and stir in bread pieces and salt and pepper to taste. If stuffing looks too dry drizzle with a few tablespoons of vegetable broth.

Place stuffing in a non-stick 9x5" loaf pan, cover with foil, and bake for one hour. The turkey may be stuffed with this recipe too!

This will be in the Thanksgiving IBS Newsletter, but for folks not on the list I'm posting it here as well.

Rosemary Raisin Bread Stuffing

This is a wonderfully old-fashioned stuffing with a hint of spice and a light sweet note from the raisins. The savory herbs give a tantalizing fragrance and flavor! Stuffing is a great soluble fiber basis to your meal, and this is important as soluble fiber is what will keep your digestion stable. So dig in!

Makes 8-10 servings.

2 cups onion, finely chopped
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 cup finely chopped fresh cranberries
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons dried rosemary, crushed
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
7 cups raisin bread, cut into 1/2" cubes and toasted (about 12 slices)
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
1/2 cup vegetable or fat-free chicken broth

Preheat oven to 325F. In a large non-stick skillet cook the onion in the oil over medium heat until softened. Add cranberries, brown sugar, rosemary, sage, and salt and pepper to taste. Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes. Transfer mixture to a large bowl, add toasted bread cubes and orange juice, and stir gently but thoroughly until well combined. Spoon stuffing into a 3-quart casserole dish, drizzle with the broth, and bake, covered, for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake 30 minutes more.



Rosemary Raisin Bread Stuffing

This is a wonderfully old-fashioned stuffing with a hint of spice and a light sweet note from the raisins. The savory herbs give a tantalizing fragrance and flavor! Stuffing is a great soluble fiber basis to your meal, and this is important as soluble fiber is what will keep your digestion stable. So dig in!

Makes 8-10 servings.

2 cups onion, finely chopped
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 cup finely chopped fresh cranberries
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons dried rosemary, crushed
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
7 cups raisin bread, cut into 1/2" cubes and toasted (about 12 slices)
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
1/2 cup vegetable or fat-free chicken broth

Preheat oven to 325F. In a large non-stick skillet cook the onion in the oil over medium heat until softened. Add cranberries, brown sugar, rosemary, sage, and salt and pepper to taste. Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes. Transfer mixture to a large bowl, add toasted bread cubes and orange juice, and stir gently but thoroughly until well combined. Spoon stuffing into a 3-quart casserole dish, drizzle with the broth, and bake, covered, for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake 30 minutes more.


Spicy Steak Fries
Serves 6

Once you've tried these, you won't go back to deep-fried again.Use herb blends that you like, instead of salt.


4 medium to large baking potatoes

1 tablespoon canola oil

Canola cooking spray

1/2 teaspoon blended herbs.
1. Scrub the potatoes and cut them in half. Cut the halves into wedges. (If time permits, soak potatoes in cold water for 1 hour to remove excess starch, drain, and dry well.)
2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Coat the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking pan or small cookie sheet with 1 tablespoon of canola oil.
3. Place the potato wedges in the pan. Spray the tops of the fries generously with canola cooking spray. Bake for about 20 minutes. Flip the fries over, sprinkle with blended herbs, and bake for 10 minutes more, until lightly browned. I love these!