If you're not a fan of stuffing a turkey and need enough to serve a large crowd this holiday season, you'll want to make this Challah Bread Thanksgiving Stuffing! It's packed full of delicious herbs, seasonings, and veggies that add great flavor, making it the best side dish for your Thanksgiving feast!
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Why You'll Love This Challah Bread Stuffing
- So easy! With just a few simple steps, you can have this challah stuffing on the table in about 2 hours. Just toast the bread, sauté the vegetables, assemble, and bake!
- Made from scratch! Make a homemade, flavor-packed Thanksgiving stuffing for a delicious side dish. Toast bakery-fresh bread and sauté fresh vegetables, instead of buying the over-salted and under-seasoned store bought kind. Trust me, you won't be sorry putting in a little extra effort!
- No turkey needed! Traditional stuffing gets stuffed inside a raw turkey's cavity. Then, it bakes inside the turkey and you have to be careful to cook it to the proper temperature to avoid any food-borne illness. If you're not cooking a turkey, or if you're worried about the food safety of it, this non-turkey stuffing recipe is perfect for you!
- Great for a holiday crowd! Since stuffing is usually cooked inside a turkey, there is very little room to fit all that you need to feed a large crowd. That's why I love this recipe that uses a 9x13 baking dish instead. It makes enough to feed about 10 to 12 guests and has just as much flavor as a turkey stuffing.
Ingredients
A few notes about the ingredients:
- Challah Bread: I love using challah bread in this recipe because it's hardy enough to hold up to the broth, eggs, and vegetables, but still light and fluffy for a moist and tender stuffing. It adds a subtle sweetness to help balance all of the other savory flavors. As an added bonus, you can also use up stale, dry bread!
- Dried Herbs: I also like using dried herbs, like parsley and sage, for this stuffing because they add a more concentrated flavor. They also make this recipe quicker and easier, since there's less chopping of fresh herbs.
- Onion and Celery: The typical added veggies for a savory Thanksgiving stuffing. They add that classic flavor.
- Honeycrisp Apple: Apple is a nice addition, since it adds a subtle sweet, fall flavor. Granny smith or gala apples would work as well.
- Ground Cinnamon: You can't really taste the cinnamon, but it adds a nice fall warmth to the stuffing. I highly recommend adding it!
- Broth: Both chicken broth or vegetable broth would work. It adds some moisture to the stuffing without making it too mushy.
- Eggs: The eggs help to bind the toasted bread, veggies, and other ingredients together. They also help to add a slight poultry flavor to the dish.
⭐️ See recipe card below for descriptions and quantities of each ingredient.
Instructions
- Step 1: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Step 2: Cut the challah into ½-inch cubes. Add to 2 baking sheets in a single layer. Pour 2 tablespoons olive oil (¼ cup total), ½ teaspoon dried parsley (1 teaspoon total), ¼ teaspoon dried sage (½ teaspoon total), ½ teaspoon salt (1 teaspoon total), and ¼ teaspoon black pepper (½ teaspoon total) over each tray of the cubed bread. Gently toss with your hands to coat.
- Step 3: Toast bread for about 20 to 25 minutes, or until dried and crispy. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
- Step 4: Turn the oven up to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9x13 baking dish with nonstick spray.
- Step 5: In a large skillet, melt the butter. Add onion, celery, apples, and garlic, along with the remaining 4 teaspoons dried parsley, 4 teaspoons ground sage, 1 ½ teaspoons salt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, and ¼ teaspoon cinnamon. Stir to combine and cook for about 10 minutes, until the vegetables soften.
- Step 6: In a large measuring cup, measure the broth and add the eggs. Whisk until the eggs are beaten into the broth.
- Step 7: In a large bowl, add dried bread, cooked vegetables, and broth mixture. Stir to combine, until the bread has softened and absorbed some of the liquid. You may need to work with half at a time, depending on the size of your largest bowl.
- Step 8: Pour into the prepared 9x13 baking dish. Bake for about 40 to 45 minutes. Tent with foil if the top starts to get too brown (I tented mine about halfway).
⭐️ Tip: While toasting the cubed challah, watch it carefully so it doesn’t burn. You want it browned and crispy, but not blackened. Stirring the bread intermittently may help it crisp up on all sides. Also, keep a close eye on the stuffing when it’s cooking in the baking dish to make sure the top doesn’t get too dark either.
Substitutions and Alterations
- Challah Bread - I highly recommend using challah, but if you can't find it at your local grocery store or bakery, you can use other hardy breads, like a sourdough, italian loaf, or brioche.
- Honeycrisp Apple - Gala, fuji, granny smith, and macintosh apples would also work.
- To make it gluten free - Simply use a sturdy gluten free bread!
- To make it dairy free - Make sure the challah or bread you buy is dairy free. Also, sub the butter for a plant based butter or additional olive oil.
- To make it vegetarian - Use low sodium vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.
How to Store Homemade Thanksgiving Stuffing
To store: Store cooled, baked stuffing in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
To freeze: Freeze the stuffing after baking in a freezer-safe container for 3 to 4 months.
To reheat: Defrost stuffing in the refrigerator overnight. Bake at 350 degrees F for 15 to 20 minutes, or until warmed through.
Top tip!
In the photos, I accidentally cubed the bread a little too big. You'll want to cut the bread into small cubes, only about a ½-inch big. They should look similar in size to the store-bought stuffing mix.
Recipe FAQs
How do you dry challah for stuffing?
I like to cut the challah into small cubes the night before I prepare the rest of the ingredients. I lay it out on the baking sheets and leave it on the counter to dry out and get stale overnight. Though, this step isn't entirely necessary, it just helps the process.
Toasting the bread in the oven for 20 or so minutes also helps to dry it out. Just keep a close eye on it to ensure it doesn't burn.
What should I do if the stuffing is turning too brown while baking?
As the challah stuffing bakes, it may start to brown on the top. If the stuffing browns too quickly, you can cover it with foil for the remainder of the cook time. The foil will help protect it from browning much further.
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Share your cooking with me! If you make this recipe, I'd love to know. Leave a comment with a rating at the bottom of this page!
Challah Bread Thanksgiving Stuffing
If you're not a fan of stuffing a turkey and need enough to serve a large crowd this holiday season, you'll want to make this Challah Bread Thanksgiving Stuffing! It's packed full of delicious herbs, seasonings, and veggies that add great flavor, making it the best side dish for your Thanksgiving feast!
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Servings: servings
Calories: 506kcal
Cost: $15
Ingredients
- 2 pounds whole loaf challah, not pre-sliced brioche would work too
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 5 teaspoons dried parsley, divided
- 4 ½ teaspoons dried ground sage, divided
- 2 ½ teaspoons kosher salt, divided
- ¾ teaspoon black pepper, divided
- 12 tablespoons (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter
- 2 ½ cups diced yellow onion (about 1 onion)
- 2 cups sliced celery (about 3 to 4 celery ribs)
- 2 ½ cups peeled and diced honeycrisp apples (about 2 small apples)
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic (about 4 garlic cloves)
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 4 cups low sodium chicken or vegetable broth
- 4 large eggs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Cut the challah into ½-inch cubes. Divide cubed challah in a single layer between 2 baking sheets. Over each tray of cubed bread, pour 2 tablespoons olive oil (¼ cup total), ½ teaspoon dried parsley (1 teaspoon total), ¼ teaspoon dried sage (½ teaspoon total), ½ teaspoon salt (1 teaspoon total), and ¼ teaspoon black pepper (½ teaspoon total). Gently toss with your hands to coat the bread.
- Toast bread for about 20 to 25 minutes, or until dried and crispy. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
- Turn the oven up to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9x13 baking dish with nonstick spray.
- In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add onion, celery, apples, and garlic, along with the remaining 4 teaspoons dried parsley, 4 teaspoons ground sage, 1 ½ teaspoons salt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, and ¼ teaspoon cinnamon. Stir to combine and cook for about 10 minutes, until the vegetables soften.
- In a large measuring cup, measure the broth and add the eggs. Whisk until the eggs are beaten into the broth.
- In a large bowl, add dried bread, cooked vegetables, and broth mixture. Stir to combine until the bread has softened and absorbed some of the liquid. You may need to work with half at a time, depending on the size of your largest bowl.
- Pour into the prepared 9x13 dish. Bake for about 40 to 45 minutes. Cover with foil if the top starts to get too brown (I covered mine about halfway).
Last step!Please consider leaving a review to let me know how you liked this recipe!
Notes
- If you have stale bread, this is a great recipe to use it up! However, if your bread is fresh, I like to cut the challah into small cubes the night before I prepare the rest of the ingredients. I lay it out on the baking sheets and leave it on the counter to dry out and get stale overnight. Though, this step isn't entirely necessary, it just helps the process. Toasting the bread in the oven for 20 or so minutes will also help to dry it out. Just keep a close eye on it to ensure it doesn't burn.
- In the photos, I accidentally cubed the bread a little too big. You'll want to cut the bread into small cubes, only about a ½-inch big. They should look similar in size to the store-bought stuffing mix.
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- To make it gluten free - Simply use a sturdy gluten free bread!
- To make it dairy free - Make sure the challah or bread you buy is dairy free. Also, sub the butter for a plant based butter or additional olive oil.
- To make it vegetarian - Use low sodium vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.
Nutrition
Calories: 506kcal | Carbohydrates: 54g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 148mg | Sodium: 1000mg | Potassium: 366mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 819IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 126mg | Iron: 4mg
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