Recipe found on eatingwell.com (originally published in EatingWell Magazine, Holiday Issue 1995)

Makes 8 servings

Ingredients

  • 4 cups cubed whole-wheat bread, (6 slices)
  • 4 cups cubed white sandwich bread, (6 slices)
  • Giblets from 1 turkey, (*see Tips), liver discarded
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 ½ teaspoons canola oil
  • 2 stalks celery, chopped
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 4 apples, peeled, cored and chopped
  • 4 teaspoons chopped fresh sage, or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried, rubbed
  • 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme, or 1 teaspoon dried
  • 1/2 cup chopped fresh (or frozen) cranberries (*see Tips)
  • 1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • Freshly ground pepper, to taste

Directions

  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Spread whole-wheat and white bread on a baking sheet and bake until lightly toasted, 15 to 20 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, place giblets and water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes. Drain, reserving the cooking liquid. Finely chop the giblets and set aside.
  • Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add celery and onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add apples, cook for 3 minutes longer. Add the giblet-cooking liquid, sage and thyme. Reduce heat to low and simmer until the apples are tender and most of the liquid has evaporated, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl and add the toasted bread, giblets and cranberries. Drizzle broth over the bread mixture and toss until evenly moistened. Season with salt and pepper.
  • Reduce oven temperature to 325°F. Transfer stuffing to a lightly oiled casserole dish and cover with foil. Bake until heated through, 35 to 45 minutes. If you would like a crisp top, uncover for the last 15 minutes of baking.

Tips

*If you don’t have turkey giblets, omit Step 2 and substitute 3/4 cup chicken broth for the giblet-cooking liquid in Step 3; omit adding chopped giblets.

*To make quick work of chopping cranberries, place whole berries in a food processor and pulse a few times until the berries are coarsely chopped.