And for me, there’s nothing like a good plate of stuffing. It’s the perfect side in so many ways. Since I usually brine or deep fry my turkey, I never actually stuff the bird with the stuffing. Instead, I always bake it separately.

My friend worked out a recipe last year that I continue to use and still say is one of the best I’ve ever tried. This year though, I decided to add some roasted chestnuts to it.

Very hard to beat this.

I posted on chestnuts in ravioli form a few weeks ago and there are some more detailed photos on how to prepare them in that post. You can also buy them jarred. Here’s the thing about the chestnuts in this version of the stuffing though: they are subtle.

Like almost invisible.

There are so many competing flavors going on (which trust me is a good thing) that the chestnuts get a bit lost. They do add some nice texture to the dish, but if you want a really big chestnut flavor to shine, you might consider doubling the chestnuts in the below recipe and eliminating the sausage.

After much test-tasting I decided that the sausage is what masked the chestnut flavors.

Chestnut Stuffing

Yield: 13x9 Pan. Serves 6-8.

Prep Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes

Ingredients:

Breading:
1/2 loaf white bread, cubed
1/2 loaf wheat bread, cubed
Note: You can totally just use one or the other, but I like the mixing.

Sausage Base:
1 pound pork sausage. Spicy is good, but not essential
1/2 large onion, diced

Aromatics:
1 Cup celery, chopped (about 3 stalks)
1 Tablespoon fresh sage, minced
2 Teaspoons fresh rosemary, minced
1 Teaspoon fresh thyme, minced

Other Flavorings:
1 Golden delicious apple, cored, peeled, and cubed
1 pound roasted chestnuts (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 Cup dried cranberries
1/3 Cup fresh parsley, chopped
2 Cups turkey or chicken stock (this varies depending on your breading. More on this later)
1/3 Cup melted butter
Salt and pepper

Directions:

1) Cube bread up into relatively large pieces and toast it in a 300 degree oven until it’s super-crispy and dry for about 20-30 minutes. Give it a quick stir halfway through just to make sure it’s cooking/drying evenly.

2) Cut an X on all of chestnuts and roast them (you can do it at the same time you are toasting your bread) for about 20 minutes or until the shell peels back nicely on each chestnut.

3) When they are roasted, halve each nut and then handle each half basically like a clove of garlic. Gently smash it with the side of a knife, the chestnut will pop right out. Do that for each one.

4) Take the casings off sausage and cook over medium-high heat in a large skillet. If sausage is on the leaner side, you might need to add a tablespoon or two of oil just to help it out.

5) After it cooks for a few minutes and starts to brown, add diced onion to the pan.

6) When the sausage is completely cooked and the onion is translucent, add celery and cook for just a few more minutes.

7) Toss all of this stuff in a bowl with your roasted chestnuts. Add other aromatics (herbs) and flavor ingredients to the sausage mixture and then toss that all together with your bread mixture.

8) Stir it together well to make sure the bread soaks up as much moisture as possible from the sausage and onion.

9) Add stock and butter in 1/2 cup batches and stir well after each batch (approximately 2.5 Cups of stock). Add a big pinch of salt and pepper.

10) Pour stuffing mixture in a 9 x 13 pan.

11) Bake at 350 degrees with foil cover for 30 minutes and then uncovered for 30 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes.

Prepping ingredients

The chestnuts are definitely the hardest part of this recipe. As for the other stuff, cube your bread up into relatively large pieces and toast it in a 300 degree oven until it’s super-crispy and dry. You don’t want it burned, but it should be crunchy like a crouton.

This should take about 20-30 minutes. Give it a quick stir halfway through just to make sure it’s cooking/drying evenly.

A white and wheat bread mix is good.

Then you can prep the stuff for your sausage mixture. This includes your sausage and onions. While you are at it you can chop up the aromatics also.

Sausage is optional I guess.

For the chestnuts, cut an X on all of them and roast them (you can do it at the same time you are toasting your bread) for about 20 minutes or until the shell peels back nicely on each chestnut.

This is a picture pre-roast. For more details on the chestnuts, check out the ravioli recipe.

Chestnuts roasting on a metal sheet...

When they are roasted, I halve each nut and then handle each half basically like a clove of garlic. Gently smash it with the side of a knife, the chestnut will pop right out. Do that for each one and you’ll have a big bowl of wonderful.

A good amount of chestnuts.

Cooking the sausage

Take the casings off your sausage and get it started cooking over medium-high heat in a large skillet. If your sausage is on the leaner side, you might need to add a tablespoon or two of oil just to help it out.

After it cooks for a few minutes and starts to brown, add your diced onion to the pan.

When the sausage is completely cooked and the onion is translucent, add your celery to the party and cook for just a few more minutes.

Toss all of this stuff in a bowl with your roasted chestnuts!

Just four ingredients, but a lot of flavor.

Bringing it all together

Add your other aromatics (herbs) and flavor ingredients to the sausage mixture and then toss that all together with your bread mixture.

Stir it together well to make sure the bread soaks up as much moisture as possible from the sausage and onion.

Then add your stock and butter to the party.

Add your stock in 1/2 cup batches and stir well after each batch. You want each bread cube to be well soaked, but there shouldn’t be any liquid left at the bottom of the pan. I probably used about 2.5 Cups of stock for my version and then mix in the melted butter last.

Also, add a big pinch of salt and pepper to the party. There’s no harm in giving this a taste at this point although it will be kind of room temperature. You are basically just tasting for salt and pepper levels.

Just remember, if it’s good now, it’ll be great later.

Warning: This will smell amazing.

Baking the stuffing

Pour your stuffing mixture in a 9X13 pan. You can really pack it in.

Ready for the oven.

Bake this at 350 degrees for a total of an hour. Bake it covered with foil for 30 minutes and then uncovered for 30 minutes.

And the trick to baking it is to make sure you give it a good stir every 15 minutes. This will prevent the bottom from getting too soggy and make sure everything cooks really evenly. I forgot to give mine a stir on one version that I made (I’ve made this twice in the past two weeks) and it was a noticeable difference.

Also, you may need to bake it for longer than an hour. Adding 15 minutes isn’t the end of the world. The end product should be moist, but not soggy and have some browned chunks throughout.

Betsy and I ate more of this than I can admit in public.

The above picture was actually of the version that I forgot to stir throughout the baking and you can see how some parts are super-crispy and some are a bit more soggy. But guess what, it was still delicious! It’s the best stuffing I’ve ever had, this just wasn’t the best version of the best stuffing I’ve ever had. Ya follow me?

So, in review:

- If you are going to be making a stuffing outside of the bird, this is one of the best I’ve ever had in my life (I’ve never actually stuffed it in the bird although I’m sure you could).

- If you want a real chestnut flavor, I’d axe the sausage and increase the chestnuts in the above recipe.

- If you don’t care about chestnuts, just leave them out. The stuffing is great without them. (Sorry chestnuts, but it’s true.)

- Stir the stuffing while baking to ensure amazingness.

I decided to break one of my rules for this meal (don’t combine two things that you’re doing for the first time in any given recipe), and make a filling with the chestnuts for a ravioli. The chestnuts weren’t too terrible to prepare, but I think I need to work on my ravioli technique a bit. They were very tasty, but not the prettiest thing on the block.

No need for sauces! Well... except butter.

One killer about this recipe is that I don’t have a pasta roller which would make the whole thing easier, but there is something fun about making it by hand. I am no Italian grandmother though so mine just look a bit more, um, rustic.

Chestnut Ravioli

Yield: Serves 4-6.

Prep Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Ingredients:

Pasta: (From How to Cook Everything)
3 1/2 Cups all-purpose flour (you probably won't use all of it)
2 eggs
3 egg yolks
1 Teaspoon salt

Filling:
1 pound chestnuts (about 20)
8 ounces Mascarpone
Very tiny pinch of cinnamon
Pinch of salt

1 egg for egg wash (plus a Tablespoon of water)
4 Tablespoons butter for brown butter sauce

Helpful Equipment:
Pasta roller
Ravioli Mold

Directions:

1) For pasta, in a bowl, beat eggs and egg yolks together and then add salt. Then, on a clean surface, add 3-4 cups of flour and make a large well in the middle. Then pour egg mixture right in the middle.

2) Using a fork (or your fingers), gently stir the egg mixture around – slowly incorporate more flour into the mixture. Don’t worry if there are some lumps.

3) Work it with your hands, kneading it, for about 10 minutes. If it starts to get really sticky at any point, just add a bit more flour from your outer ring. You most likely will not use all the flour.

4) Once you have a smooth dough, wrap in plastic wrap and let it rest for at least an hour in the fridge. You can make it 24 hours in advance without a problem.

5) For filling, heat your oven to 350 degrees.

6) Using a paring knife, make a small X on the flat side of each chestnut. Lay out all the chestnuts on a baking sheet as you work.

7) Roast the chestnuts for about 25 minutes at 350 degrees.

8) While chestnuts are warm, peel them. To keep the chestnuts warm while you peel them, leave batches in the oven at 200 degrees and pull out as needed. For those that don’t peel easily, treat them like a clove of garlic. Chop them in half and then give them a good smash with the side of the knife!

9) Add the peeled chestnuts to a bowl and mush them up a bit with a fork. Then add mascarpone cheese and the pinch of cinnamon and salt.

10) To make ravioli, cut dough ball into quarters. You should end up getting about 7 or 8 large ravioli from each quarter of dough. Then take each quarter and roll it out. Keep the dough well-floured so it doesn’t stick. If you want it to look nice, you can trim the edges of the dough with a knife so the edges are straight.

11) Place about a Tablespoon of filling on the right side of the dough. Leave about 1/2 inch in between each ball of filling.

12) Brush egg wash on all the edges and in between each filling piece. So basically there should be a square of egg wash around each ball of filling. Then fold the left half of dough over the right side and press down between each piece of ravioli. The key is to make sure you don’t have any air bubbles in each ravioli as those might cause your ravioli to explode while it’s boiling.

13) Use a knife to slice up your raviolis. If you have a ravioli mold, go around each piece to seal.

14) Get a large pot of salted water going. Once it’s boiling (gentle boil not rolling boil) toss in your ravioli. When they float, they’re done! It should only take a few minutes.

15) Melt some butter in a large pan and just when it was starting to brown, I tossed in my ravioli to coat them in the lovely brown butter sauce.

Making the Pasta Dough

I think the well method is the best for making pasta. In a bowl, beat your eggs and egg yolks together and then add your salt. Then, on a clean surface, add 3-4 cups of flour and make a large well in the middle. Then pour your egg mixture right in the middle.

Making a well.

Next, using a fork (or your fingers), gently stir the egg mixture around – slowly incorporate more flour into the mixture. Don’t worry if there are some lumps.

Use a fork to make this happen.

Eventually, you should end up with a fairly stiff dough that isn’t sticky, but isn’t dry at all. Then start working it with your hands, kneading it, for about 10 minutes. If it starts to get really sticky at any point, just add a bit more flour from your outer ring. You most likely will not use all the flour. This was my final product.

Don't rush this people.

Wrap that in plastic wrap and let it rest for at least an hour in the fridge. You can make it 24 hours in advance without a problem.

Making the filling

The first step in making the filling is to roast the chestnuts. You can roast as many as you want, they are great just to snack on. You’ll probably only need about 20-25 for the recipe though. To roast the chestnuts, heat your oven to 350 degrees.

Then, using a paring knife, make a small X on the flat side of each chestnut. Be very careful when doing this. The chestnut is kind of hard and it’s also kind of slippery. Those two factors can lead to massive wounds!

Just work slowly and you’ll get the hand of it.

Careful!

Lay out all the chestnuts on a baking sheet as you work. It took me maybe 5 or 10 minutes to get all these done once I got the hang of it.

Ready for the oven!

Roast the chestnuts for about 25 minutes at 350 degrees. They should kind of bloom open. I’ve heard that you can also boil the chestnuts to remove the skins so that might be easier for you.

The trick to peeling

As the chestnuts cool, they kind of harden which makes them much harder to peel. So you want to peel the shell of each one while it is relatively warm. The way I did this was to turn my oven down to about 200 degrees just to keep them warm and then I worked in batches – pulling out 3 or 4 chestnuts at a time to peel.

In an ideal world, you should be able to easily pop the nut part out through the whole where the X was. If it pops out perfectly, it’ll look like this!

Ideal.

But a good number of them don’t pop out nicely. For these, I treated them like a clove of garlic. Chop them in half and then give them a good smash with the side of the knife!

It’s not as pretty, but it works.

Messy.

Once all your chestnuts are peeled, the filling is super easy to put together. Just add them all to a bowl and mush them up a bit with a fork. Then add your mascarpone cheese and the pinch of cinnamon and salt.

This was a really tasty filling.

Mixed with the mascarpone.

Making the Ravioli

This is where it got a bit dicey for me, but for my first try I was pretty happy with the result.

First, cut your dough ball into quarters. You should end up getting about 7 or 8 large ravioli from each quarter of dough.

After an hour of resting.

Then take each quarter and roll it out. Keep the dough well-floured so it doesn’t stick. I was able to get my about 20 inches long by 6 inches wide. If you want it to look nice, you can trim the edges of the dough with a knife so the edges are straight.

Then place about a Tablespoon of filling on the right side of the dough. Leave about 1/2 inch in between each ball of filling.

I made some large ravioli.

Then brush your egg wash on all the edges and in between each filling piece. So basically there should be a square of egg wash around each ball of filling. Then just fold the left half of dough over the right side and press down between each piece of ravioli. The key is to make sure you don’t have any air bubbles in each ravioli as those might cause your ravioli to explode while it’s boiling.

As far as cutting goes, just use a knife to slice up your raviolis! If you have a ravioli mold, that will make sure that all your edges are pressed together well, otherwise, it’s worth it to go around each piece after you cut them. A leak around the edge of your ravioli will not end well. I lost one little guy because of this.

Not going to lie. This took me a while. It probably took me 30 minutes to make all the ravioli. It would’ve been a lot faster if I had a pasta roller. I also think I’ll be better at it my second time around. But I was pretty happy with the end result.

This is actually a lot of food.

Cooking the Ravioli

If you want to store these ravioli, they freeze really nicely. Just wrap them in plastic wrap and then store them in an airtight plastic bag. They’ll keep for awhile in there without a problem.

If you want to cook them right away (and you will), just get a large pot of salted water going. Once it’s boiling (gentle boil not rolling boil) toss in your ravioli. When they float, they’re done! It should only take a few minutes.

As far as sauce goes, simple is best. I just melted some butter in a large pan and just when it was starting to brown, I tossed in my ravioli to coat them in the lovely brown butter sauce. That’s all the sauce you need.

A bite of heaven.

I loved this meal and it actually turned out pretty successful even though I was working with two new things. I think the ravioli could have been a bit more evenly shaped, but that’s okay. They still tasted fantastic!

Would I make these again? Any day of the week. But seriously. I’m buying a pasta roller.