I had so much fun creating my own twist on the classic thanksgiving stuffing, especially since this is the first time I’ve ever made stuffing before. Growing up in a Portuguese family we never had the traditional thanksgiving spread like gravy, cranberry sauce and of course stuffing. I was blown away by how delicious this Apple Chestnut Stuffing recipe turned out and I cannot wait for you all to make it for you and your families.

I feel like stuffing is the perfect addition to any holiday dinner especially if you’re having a vegan Thanksgiving because it encompasses all the typically spices and herbs of the turkey without actually eating one!

Now I have to give a HUGE shout out to my boyfriend’s mom aka my mother in law. She’s the lady who introduced me to the best stuffing ever so I of course had to pick her brain and gather all her knowledge on the subject.

Here are some of her words of wisdom:

-Add spices like celery salt and poultry seasoning along with your other herbs and salt and pepper.

-Coat the dry bread with the dry spices before pouring on the liquid so the bread is evenly spiced.

-Get your hands dirty and knead the bread so you can feel the texture of the bread and know if you need to add more liquid. If there’s liquid at the bottom of the bowl you’ve added too much.

-Shape your raw stuffing into a ball and wrap in foil before placing into the oven to bake. This helps mimic what happens in the turkey and will keep the inside moist and the outside crispy.

-Remove the foil top for the last 15 min to really get that “golden brown” crust.

I took her recommendations as well as my own crazy ideas and created this Apple Chestnut Stuffing Loaf. Terry (Mother In-Law) actually loved my idea about the loaf pan since it still keeps the center moist and keeps everything together.

 This thanksgiving-stuffing recipe would drench in either miso or mushroom gravy! I really should have made both at the same thing.. I don’t know where my head was. 

Recipe

Apple Chestnut Stuffing Loaf

A vegan healthy twist on the traditional thanksgiving stuffing recipe with fresh herbs, chestnut pieces and apple.

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Cook Time: 50 minutes mins

Ingredients:

Ingredients

• 1 loaf of bread I used Ezekiel bread
• 2 cups vegan chicken broth
• 1 cup of chestnuts you can use walnuts too
• 1 apple chopped gala or Macintosh works well
• 1 shallot finely sliced
• 1- cup leek finely sliced
• 2 stalks celery finely sliced
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 2 tbsp. vegan butter
• 1 tsp. rosemary finely chopped
• 1/2 tbsp. thyme finely chopped
• 1 tbsp. sage finely chopped
• 1/2 tsp. celery salt
• 1 tsp. poultry seasoning
• 1 tsp. sea salt
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper

category:

serves: 8

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Instructions:

Directions

• Night before: Start by cutting your loaf of bread into cubes and lay out on cookie trays to dry out overnight.
• To prepare your chestnuts, start by creating slits at the top of your chestnuts kind of like a clam. Boil them for 30 min, drain, rinse and peel off shell. Roughly chop and set aside.
• Pre-heat oven to 350 C.
• In a large pan on medium heat, melt the butter and add in the garlic, shallots, celery and leek and cook for 3 min.
• Next, add in the fresh herbs, apple chunks, chopped chestnuts and 1 cup of broth. Stir and cook on low-med heat for 5-6 min and set aside.
• In an extra large bowl, add in your dry bread cubes and dry spices and toss until evenly coated.
• Add in your wet stuffing mixture and combine with a spatula. Once evenly mixed you can start to use your hands and knead the bread mixture well while adding in the remaining broth. Depending on they type of bread you may need more or less broth. Using your hands allows you to feel out the mixture so you don’t end up with soggy stuffing. You want it just wet enough so the bread isn’t dry and easily clumps together when pressed.
• Spoon stuffing into a greased loaf pan while pressing firmly with a spatula. Create a mound on top using your hands and double wrap your loaf with foil creating a cocoon so the moisture and heat stays in.
• Bake in the oven for 35 min. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 15 min until top is golden brown.
• Remove stuffing loaf from oven and transfer to a cooling rack for 15-20 min before serving.

Notes

You can slice and scoop your stuffing right out of the loaf pan and serve it with a side of mushroom gravy and roasted cauliflower.

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Hey HealthNuts!

If you recreate any of these recipes please share a photo on social media and
TAG me @healthnutnutrition and #healthnuteats so I can easily find them and like them!

Wishing everyone a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner with your friends and family. Comment below telling me one thing your thankful for this year, I’d love to read your responses.

I’m grateful for the success of my YouTube channel and blog this year as well as all the relationships I’ve made through it like meeting Davida (The Healthy Maven), Lee (FitFoodieFinds), Candice (TheEdgyVeg), Jesse (Jesse Lane Wellness), and I know there’s many others 🙂