POTATO SAUSAGE STUFFING
Recipe contributed by newsletter subscriber John Lehndorff
My potato sausage stuffing comes from my mom, Rose, by way of her Sicilian grandmother, Vincenza Mazzola, who adapted it for Thanksgiving from a recipe cooked by a French immigrant neighbor in Willimantic, Connecticut, using fresh Italian sausage made by my grandfather, Michael Mazzola, at his Italian market. I'll be peeling potatoes for the umpteenth Thanksgiving Eve in a row on Wednesday night.
Potato Sausage Stuffing
• 5 to 6 pounds mixed red and Russet potatoes, peeled and chunked
• 2 pounds or so Italian sweet sausage (no casing) - or hot sausage
• 1 pound or so ground pork
• 1 large yellow onion, minced
• 3 or more large cloves garlic, minced
• ½ pound butter or more
• ¼ teaspoon fresh black pepper or to tatse
• salt to taste
• ¼ to 1 tablespoon poultry seasoning or sage, to taste
• turkey or chicken stock
• Optional 2 stalks celery, finely chopped
Boil spuds in plenty of water until barely tender, not mushy.
Drain, place in large pot over low heat and add butter.
While the spuds are boiling, crumble sausage, ground pork, onions and garlic in frying pan and cook until pink is gone.
Don't overcook.
Add sausage to potatoes along with seasonings and stir well ... but not TOO well.
It will cook much more in the bird or in a casserole.
Add stock and/or more butter if mixture is too dry.
Taste the stuffing and adjust seasonings to taste. Roast inside turkey (or chicken) or in casserole until heated through.
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