Although I probably enjoy my Thanksgiving gravy a little more than the stuffing or the turkey itself— together, they’re the perfect partnership. For added depth, I often fold in diced, sautéed apples, fresh herbs and toasted walnuts or Italian sweet sausage to the homemade croutons.
I especially love making corn bread stuffing for the holidays. I remember one year my father requested oyster stuffing (he read about it in the NY Times)... hmmm... we tried it but not a family favorite!
I learned to prepare stuffing, rolled in a cloth napkin and poached in chicken broth at the CIA. I actually prepared this and served this stuffing roll sliced with roasted goose and braised red cabbage on the 10th and final day of the CMC exam.

A white bowl filled with stuffing and green onions

Holiday Stuffings

Growing up, our Thanksgiving stuffing was always a simple but deeply satisfying Italian tradition: chopped, sweet Italian sausage, onions, celery and day-old, toasted, Italian bread with eggs packed into the cavity of the turkey. The aroma was incredible, and the juices from the roasted turkey gave the stuffing an unmatched richness and moisture. I especially loved the 'cavity' stuffing the following day.


Today, best practices have shifted. To ensure food safety—and to prevent undercooking the turkey—most people prepare stuffing outside the bird.

Cooking the stuffing separately allows the turkey to reach 165°F safely (and quickly) while giving chefs more control over texture, seasoning, and browning. I always add rich, delicious turkey broth to my stuffing. It’s every bit as flavorful, with improved consistency and far fewer risks.

Prep Time: 3o min

Cooking Time: 30 min 

Ingredients

 Yield: 10 portions                                       

3 Tbsp       Butter, melted                                                                                            

2 Cups       Bread, small dice, toasted  (crusts optional)

                    Seasoning

3 Tbsp       Butter, melted                                                   

1/2 Cup.    Onions, minced & sweated                                                           

1/2 Cup     Celery, minced & sweated     

1 Cup          Apple, granny smith, peeled/cored & diced (optional)

1 sprig       Thyme, fresh, picked                                                

1/4 tsp.      Poultry seasoning                                                                           

1 Cup         Turkey or chicken stock                                                                                   

2 ea            Eggs                 

1/2 Cup.     Sweet Italian Sausage, cooked-chopped (optional)                                                                                    

t.t.               Salt                                                                                                                 

t.t.               Black pepper       

How to prepare Stuffing

A cutting board with eggs , apples , celery , onions and croutons on it
A tray of bread cubes is sitting on a table.

Step 1

Coat the croutons in melted butter or oil, season and bake until lightly browned.      

A pan filled with chopped onions is cooking on a stove.

Step 2

Cut the onions and celery into very small dice.

Sweat the onions and celery in butter for 3-4 minutes, add the seasonings and turkey stock and reduce by half.







If adding cooked sausage, nuts, diced apples, etc... add now and cool with the onions/celery mix.                         

A close up of a bowl of stuffing with bread and vegetables.
A glass casserole dish filled with stuffing and apples.
A bowl of stuffing is sitting on a table

Step 3

Mix the egg with the cooked onion and celery mixture.                                             

Toss the celery, onions, apples, thyme, seasonings and croutons together in a bowl.

Transfer to a buttered casserole dish.

(Two different sized casseroles are shown)

Step 4

Bake uncovered at 350°F until lightly browned.  (about 20 minutes)

Delicious suffings can also be prepared with croutons made with bagels, brioche, ciabatta, cornbread etc...

This is a photo of cornbread stuffing with carrots, celery, leeks & rosemary.

Dessert; Italian Wheat Pie

By Tom Griffiths • April 11, 2026
Our Easter and Christmas meals were feasts... my mother's family all met at Aunt Flora's home in Jersey City to enjoy and celebrate the holidays. Dinner began with platters of fresh mozzarella, roasted peppers, olives, Italian bread, then a pasta course (manicotti or lasagna for the religious holidays), a roast or sausages with plenty of vegetables and traditional Italian desserts with dark coffee.We ate Italian Easter Wheat Pie one day each year—and it was never store-bought. My Aunts brought Easter cookies and baked goods-the wheat pie was my favorite. I loved the slight 'bite' of the wheat and flavors of cinnamon, vanilla and citrus. My father sometimes let me have a sip of his espresso with the dessert. I'm not sure if my mother used lard for the pie crust-she was a fan of butter and Crisco but the crust was always flaky.

Roast Leg of Lamb

By Tom Griffiths • April 8, 2026
There are certain dishes that stay with you—not just for their flavor, but for what they represent. For me, roasting a leg of lamb over Pommes boulangère is one of those meals. I don't recall having lamb at any occasions growing up so this was a dish that I proudly introduced to our family. As a young cook, it was something I could prepare with limited experience, and it provided deeply satisfying results. The lamb roasts in the oven over a bed of potatoes, onions, and garlic, allowing its natural juices and fat to baste the vegetables below. It's actually a simple preparation but becomes a complete, delicious meal—the potatoes absorbing flavor and becoming just as important as the roast itself. These days I'm developing delicious recipes using spice blends such as Ras el hanout, Baharat, Za'atar, Togarashi and even Harissa. I also love roasting leg of lamb outdoors on a grill or rotisserie. I like the subtle smokiness from applewood or dried herbs when I'm roasting lamb outdoors.

Potatoes Boulangère

By Tom Griffiths • April 8, 2026
There are certain dishes that stay with you—not just for their flavor, but for what they represent. For me, Pommes boulangère is one of those dishes. As a young cook, it was a delicious meal I could prepare for my family with my limited culinary experience. I often return to this preparation when roasting whole chicken, pork, or lamb—letting the potatoes, onions, and garlic absorb the natural juices from the protein as it cooks. The potatoes becomes more than a side dish; it’s the foundation of the meal.

Holiday Au Graten Potatoes

By Tom Griffiths • April 7, 2026
There are countless versions of Potatoes au gratin , many of them heavy with cheese. I prefer a more restrained approach—using little or no cheese—so the flavor of the potatoes remains the focus rather than being masked. Milk produces a lighter, more delicate gratin, while light or heavy cream creates a richer, more structured dish. Both are valid—it simply depends on the desired outcome. One constant, however, is nutmeg. Used sparingly, it acts as a quiet “secret weapon,” adding depth without calling attention to itself. This recipe is inspired by Xavier LeRoux, one of the finest chefs I’ve had the privilege to work with. His method includes an extra step—gently simmering the potatoes in cream before baking—which yields a noticeably superior result. The potatoes begin to release their starch into the cream early, ensuring a more uniform texture and a fully integrated dish from the first bite to the last.

My favorite Brownies

By Tom Griffiths • March 19, 2026
There are plenty of brownie recipes—and then there is the one that lives in memory. This is the only brownie recipe I bake, from Julia Child, whose influence reached far beyond French cuisine and into the home kitchens of passionate bakers like my mother. A devoted admirer, she baked these brownies often—usually for the dessert trolley at my restaurant. We featured a brownie freeze... brownie cubes with homemade vanilla ice cream, warm melted chocolate and freshly whipped cream-amazing! For me, this recipe is more than a classic—it’s a reflection of how great cooking is passed down: through admiration, repetition, and a deep love of craft.

Curing Salmon fillet

By Tom Griffiths • March 19, 2026
I taught garde manager for many years at the CIA and this is one of my favorite recipes from class. I actually developed this recipe with one of my students, inspired by a recipe he had learned on his externship.

Dessert; Irish Soda Breadd

By Tom Griffiths • March 17, 2026
We ate Irish soda bread one day each year—and it was never store-bought. Soda bread wasn’t part of our cultural lineage, but it earned its place through something more universal: respect for tradition. My mother was not an occasional baker— growing up, her baking centered on Italian traditions: special Christmas cookies, the Vigna family birthday cake, and beautifully braided Easter breads that reflected heritage. Later, like many serious home bakers of her generation, she was influenced by Julia Child . That influence expanded her repertoire into classic European pastry—Paris-Brest, pound cakes, even German chocolate cake. The iconic cross cut into the top of the loaf is often said to “let the fairies out,” though in professional kitchens we recognize its functional role: allowing heat to penetrate and the loaf to expand evenly during baking.

Authentic Guacamole, Hospitality, and the Responsibility of Feeding People

By Tom Griffiths • February 26, 2026
Authentic Guacamole, Hospitality, and the Responsibility of Feeding People

Beginners recipe: Vegetable Stock

By Tom Griffiths • January 16, 2026
I recently volunteered to prepare vegetable paella for a church Bible group potluck. I was very excited to develop a delicious, new paella recipe and spent time preparing fresh vegetable stock with flavors of the Mediterranean. I always prepare vegetable and fish stocks fresh, as I intend to use them. I’m not a fan of bases or frozen stocks but I sometimes add a small amount of quality base to my stocks.  A vegetable stock with mirepoix, cabbage, mushrooms makes sense in certain applications, for certain recipes—but why would we use a mushroom or cabbage-forward stock in a paella? It doesn’t make culinary sense. Paella is a Mediterranean dish originating in the Valencia region of Spain as a humble meal cooked on an open fire. I’ve enjoyed wonderful paella meals in Valencia prepared with water-not stock, prepared with rabbit, snails and local beans. While traveling through Spain this spring I researched and sampled many styles of paella… no mushrooms, no carrots, no celery and no cabbage.

Beginners recipe: Breakfast Burritos

By Tom Griffiths • January 16, 2026
I still remember cooking breakfast burritos with my son Daniel, for volunteer workers at church events—simple, hearty, and made to fuel a long day of service. The workers were always so appreciative. Years later, I served a crowd favorite, nicknamed “The Bacon-ator,” a breakfast superstar inspired by the over-the-top spirit of fast-food indulgence. We had a popular food booth at the local country fair, where we cooked hundreds of breakfast burritos each day-stuffed with Mexican cheeses, extra bacon, fluffy scrambled eggs, and fresh salsa—nothing pre-made, nothing rushed. Every burrito was warm, fresh, and full of flavor. When food is made with love, even the most straightforward breakfast is memorable.