In my opinion, Thanksgiving stuffing is a dish best made simple. It should be moist, buttery and just flavorful enough. This chunky leek and butter stuffing is tossed with celery and leeks, and flavored with fresh herbs and butter. It has just the right balance of moistness, chew and crunch. It’s absolutely the best stuffing I’ve ever had, and it’s just so easy to perfect!

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Which bread makes the best stuffing?

This is the big question, but it has a simple answer. It all depends on the texture you’re trying to accomplish, and the flavor profile. In this recipe I used a rustic sourdough with a chewy inside and a thick crunchy crust.

Challah: This is one of my favorite breads because it’s dense and slightly sweet. The texture will absorb liquid well, giving you a bread pudding like consistency, but there won’t be any crunch. The flavor will be slightly sweeter and a lot more rich from the butter and egg.

French bread: The texture will absorb liquid and will be soft. This is good if you don’t like a chunky stuffing but a more dissolved/blended feel. The flavor is neutral so it will take on whatever you add to the recipe.

Sourdough: The texture will be moist with chewy and crunchy bits from the crust. This bread makes a chunkier stuffing. The flavor is pretty neutral with a hint of sour, but it won’t be noticeable against the rest of the ingredients.

Croutons: These make for a loose, small pieced stuffing. The texture is spongy and fluffy. The flavor will be depend on what type of croutons you use, they often have a saltier flavor.

The Mix Ins for this Leek and Butter Stuffing

Not too little, not too much. It’s important not to add too many mix-ins, keep it simple yet flavorful by choosing ingredients that hold a lot of flavor. For example, choose leeks instead of carrots and add garlic.

The Chopped Vegetables

• Leeks
• Celery
• Garlic

The Fresh Herbs

• parsley
• rosemary
• time

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