Unique stuffings can be Thanksgiving standouts

Video: Turkey stuffing done right

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   >>> this morning in "today's kitchen," hot chefs amanda hesser and meryl stubs. there seems to be countless turkey recipes to choose from, but we have two that might make your thanksgiving extra special. amanda and meryl are co-founders of the web side food52. good morning, ladies.

   >> good morning.

   >> hey.

   >> stuffing, do you know anybody who doesn't like stuffing?

   >> no.

   >> can't think of a single person.

   >> and if they don't, i don't trust them. these are special stuffings here.

   >> yep.

   >> let's start here first, amanda . now, what is this stuffing that we're going to make?

   >> so, this is a vegetarian stuffing. it's made with holla and traditional vegetables like onions, celery, mushrooms, rosemary and thyme.

   >> why holla bread?

   >> what's great about holla --

   >> can we all say it together now? holla!

   >> this recipe comes from mrs. wheel barrow, an expert on our site. and her husband's vegetarian. i'm going to put this here because we're going to put you to work. challah is great because it's buttery and fluffy and wonderful.

   >> very much like myself.

   >> exactly. so, you're going to mix for us. what we do first is saute the vegetables.

   >> is this stale challah?

   >> it's stale, and that's the trick. with stuffing, you want your bread to be stale or toasted, because then it object soshs the liquid and doesn't fall apart.

   >> and challah's great because it has a lot of butter in it, it's very rich.

   >> we're going to season this a bit.

   >> okay.

   >> then we're going to add a vegetable broth, which is over here.

   >> all right.

   >> yep. and some -- and then the secret ingredient , which is, of course, more butter.

   >> of course!

   >> a whole stick of butter.

   >> yes! that's all right.

   >> there we go. excellent.

   >> this is when it gets really fun.

   >> so, what you want to do with this is we use an iron pan and you press it into the pan, cover it and bake it. and the other trick with stuffing is you want to bake it half covered, and then at the end, uncover it so it gets a crisp top and stays nice in the center.

   >> and what are we making here, sweet potatoes ?

   >> sweet potato and mushroom stuffing. so, the bread's a little different. and you start with these great, homemade garlic croutons. they have sage and rosemary and garlic and olive oil in them. you bake them first.

   >> this recipe comes from melissa v., who is from fort lauderdale , an attorney.

   >> her husband owns a wine store .

   >> oh, nice. so, you've cubed smup sweet potatoes ?

   >> yep, and first goes in the chorizo, which is a smokey sausage, flavored with paprika. and you can get it spicy or mild. so, that's -- here.

   >> some onions?

   >> some onions.

   >> sauteed onions.

   >> right.

   >> and some shiitake mushrooms . i don't want to burn you. which is nice and brown.

   >> and then --

   >> of course --

   >> just half.

   >> just half? why only half?

   >> because you brush the bread with the remaining.

   >> or you could use all of this and melt some more butter.

   >> exactly.

   >> the thing about stuffing, when you think about it, it's just bread, which is like a comforting food to everyone, that you season with your favorite flavors.

   >> and what's this we're putting in here?

   >> chicken stock mixed with an egg.

   >> put it all together.

   >> so you're going to bake it. let's head back this way. can you, in fact, do this in the turkey?

   >> you can, but what we like about both of these recipes is by baking them in the oven, when you uncover them, you get a kris crispy top, which you don't get in the bird.

   >> or you could do some in the bird and some in the oven and mix them together. amanda , meryl , thank you so much.

   >> thank you.

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