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Someone asked the other day about my mother's bread and potato stuffing so I thought I would make some so that I could share the recipe. I think bread and potato is a very unique Maritime provinces/New England kind of thing.
I have never seen it done anywhere else, but I could be wrong. This is the stuffing that I grew up with. My mother always made it to go with our Thanksgiving and Christmas turkey's. Those were the only times during the year that we would have a turkey dinner.
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Having a turkey for both Thanksgiving and Christmas is not so much of a big deal here in Canada as there is pretty much 2 and some months between both holidays. I totally get why in America they usually have something else for their Christmas dinner, with there being literally less than a month in between the two holidays.
I dare say I wouldn't want to be eating a turkey (with all its leftovers) again so soon either.
This year for our own Thanksgiving my son made the old-fashioned bread stuffing, which got cooked inside the turkey, and my sister made mom's bread and potato stuffing. That way everyone was happy, and those of us who enjoy both were really happy!
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This is the stuffing that we had in our home all of my growing up years. It is made from using potatoes, onions, celery, and breadcrumbs, some butter, summer savory, sage, and a healthy pinch of the poultry seasoning.
I usually make my own poultry seasoning. You can find a recipe for that here. It's really good if I don't say so myself. I always keep a jar of it in my cupboard.
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My ex-MIL also made bread and potato stuffing, except hers used fine dry breadcrumbs and mashed potatoes in equal measures. She was from Prince Edward Island, so I guess that must be how they make theirs there. It is also very good. You can find that recipe here.
Stuffing, to me, is always the best part of the holiday dinner. I could sit down and eat a whole plate of stuffing and nothing else at all. There is just something very moreish about it!
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WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE MOM'S BREAD & POTATO STUFFING
Very simple everyday ingredients. There is nothing out of the ordinary here. This is a recipe which has been handed down from generation to generation and our ancestors were simple cooks.
- 5 TBS butter
- 1 large onion, peeled and minced
- 1 large stalk celery, trimmed and diced
- 1 TBS celery leaves, chopped
- 3 pounds potatoes, peeled and quartered (you want to use one which is good for mashing)
- 180ml warm milk (3/4 cup)
- 1 1/2 tsp bells (or poultry) seasoning
- 1/2 tsp summer savory
- 1/2 tsp crumbled sage
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 355g coarse breadcrumbs from a sturdy loaf of white bread (6 cups)
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Summer Savory is a very Maritime ingredient. It is grown right here in the Maritime provinces and can sometimes be quite difficult to find anywhere else.
It is often compared to marjoram or thyme. Summer savory has a spicy aroma and pungent, peppery flavor that's milder and less penetrating than its cousin, winter savory. It's a key ingredient in classic herb blends like bouquet garni and fines herbes.
If you cannot find summer savory, you can substitute it with marjoram or thyme (or a mix of the two) or winter savory.
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You can use any kind of bread in this, although I would not use anything like a Brioche. It should be day old, or stale. Today I used leftover French Sandwich Pain au Lait bread from what I had made the other day. It worked wonderfully.
I just cut off all the crusts and then cut it into 1/2-inch cubes. It worked really well.
If you want, you can just use leftover mashed potatoes. Mom always did. You will need about 1 1/2 cups.
It's really very easy. Really.
- Place the potatoes in a pot of lightly salted water to cover. Bring to the boil and cook until fork tender.
- While the potatoes are cooking melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the onion. Cook, over medium low heat, stirring frequently, until the onion is softened and translucent without browning. Stir in the celery and cook for a few minutes longer. Remove from heat.
- Drain the potatoes and return to the pan. Shake over the heat of the burner to dry them out a bit. Mash together with the warmed milk. Stir in the butter, onion, celery and celery leaves.
- Add the seasonings and breadcrumbs, mixing all well together. Taste and season with salt and black pepper.
- Cool completely and use to stuff a turkey. Alternately pile into a buttered baking dish and bake alongside the turkey for the last half hour of bake time.
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I have never really cooked this inside the bird. Neither did my mom, nor my grandmother. It was always cooked in a casserole dish outside the bird. Mom always used raw onion, but I like to cook it a bit first. Mom did not always use celery.
I like the addition of celery and I like to use some of the leaves for even more flavor.
If you are using leftover mashed potato, don't use leftover mash that has had things like sour cream and the like added to them. Just plain old, mashed potatoes will suffice!
If the mixture seems a bit dry you can add a bit of chicken stock. I never really have to. You don't want this to be soggy, or too moist.
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I really, really enjoyed this, even though it's not Thanksgiving at the moment and there is not a turkey in sight.
I fulfilled all of my childhood fantasies and had a bowl of this for my supper and nothing else at all. It was quite delicious if I don't say so myself!
Yield: 4 - 6
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Mom's Bread and Potato Stuffing
Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 30 MinTotal time: 45 Min
This is the stuffing of my childhood. It would not be the holidays without it.
Ingredients
- 5 TBS butter
- 1 large onion, peeled and minced
- 1 large stalk celery, trimmed and diced
- 1 TBS celery leaves, chopped
- 3 pounds potatoes, peeled and quartered (you want to use one which is good for mashing)
- 180ml warm milk (3/4 cup)
- 1 1/2 tsp bells (or poultry) seasoning
- 1/2 tsp summer savory
- 1/2 tsp crumbled sage
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 355g coarse breadcrumbs from a sturdy loaf of white bread (6 cups)
Instructions
- Place the potatoes in a pot of lightly salted water to cover. Bring to the boil and cook until fork tender.
- While the potatoes are cooking melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the onion. Cook, over medium low heat, stirring frequently, until the onion is softened and translucent without browning. Stir in the celery and cook for a few minutes longer. Remove from heat.
- Drain the potatoes and return to the pan. Shake over the heat of the burner to dry them out a bit. Mash together with the warmed milk. Stir in the butter, onion, celery and celery leaves.
- Add the seasonings and breadcrumbs, mixing all well together. Taste and season with salt and black pepper.
- Cool completely and use to stuff a turkey. Alternately pile into a buttered baking dish and bake alongside the turkey for the last half hour of bake time.
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I have a thing for crackers. Simply put, I love them. I will quit happily sit here munching on a few in the evening instead of potato chips.
When I was a child, my mother always gave us crackers with our bowls of soup. We also had access to the butter dish. Oh boy but that was some tasty. Buttered crackers and hot soup.
We did not skimp on the butter. My father used to ask us if we wanted some more crackers on our butter. Margarine never saw the light of day in my mother's house. It was not something she ever would have fed to us.
Of course, we used to beg her to buy some, based on the enticing commercials we saw on the television. Imagine. Margarine that actually spoke to you. Our butter never spoke, and I am afraid we took it quite for granted.
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One of my favorite childhood meals used to be a bowl of tomato soup with my crackers crumbled into it, topped with a nice nob of butter and plenty of pepper. I confess I still treat myself to a bowl every now and then.
I was most disturbed in the UK when my soup never came with crackers, but always with a roll. Somehow, to me anyways, soup is never as good with a roll as it is with crackers.
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There is not a lot of spice. Just enough that you know it is there and I can tell you, these taste far better than any flavored cracker you might find out there on the supermarket shelves. They are crisp, buttery and delicious!
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WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE SPICED BUTTERY CRACKERS
Two simple ingredients and a few spices. That's all.
- 1/2 cup (120g) butter, melted
- 1 tsp garlic Italian seasoning
- 1/2 tsp seasoned salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 sleeve of unsalted tops soda crackers (38 or so single crackers)
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I use crackers with unsalted tops. This is because I watch my salt intake and there is also salt in the butter and in the seasonings.
In the UK, you will want to use what are called Italian Crackers. Doriano is the brand I always used to buy (once I discovered they were quite similar to the saltines from back home.) But they come in many brands. Doriano is probably the most common one.
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You can vary the seasonings you want to use on top of these. The ones I used are a very Italian type of blend, with oregano, garlic, etc.
You could make Indian flavored ones to go with a Mulligatawny Soup, or a bowl of Curry Roasted Vegetable Soup. A bit of curry powder, some garlic, ground cumin and coriander would work well.
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You could give them a Tex Mex flavor to serve with a delicious bowl of Chili such as the one here on Dinner at the Zoo. Looks some good.
Just add some taco seasoning, or chili powder, garlic powder, a bit of oregano and onion powder. You could even top with a bit of grated cheese for the last 10 minutes or so of bake time. Sounds delicious!
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Are your wheels turning? I hope so. I think there is no end to the combinations you could come up with for seasoning these delicious crackers!
The world really is your oyster when it comes to these. I saw some KD cheese powder at the Cambridge Convenience store yesterday and I am thinking that they would be delicious with some of that sprinkled on top, or even some popcorn seasoning!
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I know I say this all the time, but . . . nothing could be easier. I am rather lazy you know!
- Preheat the oven to 275*F/135*C/ gas mark 3. Lay a cooling rack on top of a rimmed, baking sheet.
- Whisk the melted butter together with the Italian seasoning, seasoning salt and black pepper.
- Dunk the crackers into the butter mixture to coat. Place in a single layer on the rack over the baking sheet.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown. Leave to cool and then store in an airtight container.
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I think these will be an excellent addition to your holiday menu. They would fit in just great on a cheese tray and I believe they would be excellent with the following dips and spreads:
SMOKED SALMON SPREAD - This was something I made frequently as a canapé when I cooked at Brenchley Manor. The guests always loved it. It was creamy and delicious and felt quite luxurious. Something special indeed for the holidays.
DEVILED HAM SPREAD - Excellent to be used as a sandwich spread, or as a spread to go on crackers. Very popular for games nights as well. This is quite simply a delicious spread.
Yield: 8
Spiced Buttery Crackers
Prep time: 5 MinCook time: 25 MinTotal time: 30 Min
Crisp and delicious. Buttery golden brown. Perfect with cheese or with a hot bowl of soup. You decide.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (120g) butter, melted
- 1 tsp garlic Italian seasoning
- 1/2 tsp seasoned salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 sleeve of unsalted tops soda crackers (38 or so single crackers)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 275*F/135*C/ gas mark 3. Lay a cooling rack on top of a rimmed, baking sheet.
- Whisk the melted butter together with the Italian seasoning, seasoning salt and black pepper.
- Dunk the crackers into the butter mixture to coat. Place in a single layer on the rack over the baking sheet.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown. Leave to cool and then store in an airtight container.
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Sauerkraut is one of those things that people either love or loathe. I am from the love it crew. It is something we would have as an occasional treat when I was growing up. Basically, this was because my father was from the loath it crowd.
Therefore, my mother only cooked it when she knew he was not going to be around. It was something she had grown up with and adored. As far as I know all of us children love it, although I am sure they will correct me if I am wrong!
My grandfather's people came from the South Shore of Nova Scotia, the Bridgewater/Lunenburg region in an area called New Germany. Lots of Germans settled in that area and so a lot of the foods which were enjoyed have a German or German Dutch history.
My grandfather always made his own sauerkraut. He kept it in a barrel in the cellar. My mother always told the story about how the juice from the raw kraut cured her of an illness when she was a child.
My sister still makes her own kraut, for probiotic purposes.
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Pork and sauerkraut have a natural affinity for each other. Sometimes my mother would cook it with pork hocks, or a cottage roll ham. Sometimes wieners. We didn't really care. We loved it any way she cooked it.
She would always serve it with mounds of fluffy mashed potatoes. I loved to load my potatoes with butter and then mash the kraut into the potatoes. I could eat a whole plate of that and nothing else.
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Today I cooked mine with a piece of sweet-pickled pork. Sweet-pickled pork is like the corned beef of the pork family.
The only way to really describe it is that its pork shoulder which has been preserved in a brine consisting of salt, sugar, seasoning, and vinegar.
This was a common way of preserving pork back in the days before refrigeration. This cut of pork would not really make good hams (which traditionally come from the upper leg of the pig.) The bellies would be smoked and made into bacon. The shoulder was ideal for pickling.
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Slow cooking it in this manner, along with some sauerkraut, yields tender and juicy meat. The sauerkraut helps to tenderize the pork, and the pork helps to inject its flavor into the kraut.
It is a taste marriage made in heaven. Pure and simple. This is comfort food with a capital "C."
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WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE PICKLED PORK & SAUERKRAUT
Very simple ingredients that are available everywhere.
- 1 piece of sweet-pickled pork (about 1 1/2 pounds/680g)
- 1 container of fresh sauerkraut (holding about 3 cups)
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 small onion, peeled and chopped
- 1/2 medium apple, cored, peeled and chopped
- 1 TBS soft light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup (120ml) boiling water
To serve:
- 1 recipe of fluffy mashed potatoes
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I know that sweet-pickled pork is not available everywhere, but you can also use a pork Cottage Roll which is very similar. You can also use smoked pork hocks, or ham.
If you can find it, however, do use the pickled pork!
The brand of sauerkraut I used this time was from Lewis Mountain Farms in New Brunswick. Normally I would use Tancook from the South Shore.
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I like to add some chopped onion and apple for flavor, as well as a bay leaf. You can also add a few juniper berries if you have them. I did not have any today. Juniper berries have a slightly piney flavor that goes very well with pork.
I always like to drain and rinse the pork and the kraut well to get rid of some of the salt. I do add some water to the cooking dish to make up for this, but you can use chicken stock instead, or even apple juice which is really nice.
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HOW TO MAKE PICKLED PORK & SAUERKRAUT
I have used a slow cooker to cook this today, which is actually my preferred method. It yields consistent results, tender meat and perfectly cooked kraut, but you can also cook this in the oven if you wish. (You can see the slow cooker I use here. I love it.)
Rinse your meat really well in cold running water and then pat dry. Set aside.
Drain your sauerkraut in a colander and rinse with cold running water. Drain again. Dump into the ceramic insert of your crockpot. Stir in the chopped apple, onion, bay leaf and brown sugar, combining everything well together.
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Nestle the piece of pork down into the kraut mixture. Pour the boiling water over the kraut around the pork.
Cover and cook on high for 5 to 6 hours until tender. Alternately cook on low for about 7 - 8 hours.
To cook in a conventional oven, prepare as above placing everything into an oven-proof casserole dish. Cover tightly and bake at 325*F/160*C/gas mark 3 for 3 to 4 hours, checking periodically to make sure it doesn't cook dry and topping up with a bit more water if need be.
Spoon the kraut onto a platter. Slice the pork into thick slices and add to the platter. Serve immediately with buttery mashed potatoes on the side.
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This is one of my favorite comfort food meals. I had not cooked any in ages. I think the last time I cooked it was when I was home in 2011 when my mother had her lung cancer operation. Today this was a wonderful taste of nostalgia for me.
Of course, I had to enjoy it with my favorite mashed potatoes, nice knob of butter melting into the top of my potatoes. I was in sauerkraut heaven!
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Some other comfort food indulgences that you might enjoy are:
FRIED CABBAGE AND POTATOES - I adore cabbage and I adore potatoes. They are two of my most favorite vegetables. Combine them both and I am in comfort food heaven! This is a simple side dish that goes well with just about anything. If you are a vegetarian, it makes a delicious main dish, especially if you serve it with a nice square of cornbread on the side!
STEWED BRISKET AND POTATOES - Crusty, buttery little drop biscuits . . . tender in the middle and dropped on top of a beautiful rich gravy, tender potatoes and those delicious chunks of beef brisket!
Yield: 4
Pickled Pork & Sauerkraut
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 6 HourTotal time: 6 H & 10 M
This is comfort food pure and simple. I love to serve this with a nice pile of buttery mashed potatoes. This is cooked in a crock pot, but can also be cooked in a regular oven.
Ingredients
- 1 piece of sweet pickled pork (about 1 1/2 pounds/680g)
- 1 container of fresh sauerkraut (holding about 3 cups)
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 small onion, peeled and chopped
- 1/2 medium apple, cored, peeled and chopped
- 1 TBS soft light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup (120ml) boiling water
To serve:
- 1 recipe of fluffy mashed potatoes
Instructions
- Rinse your meat really well in cold running water and then pat dry. Set aside.
- Drain your sauerkraut in a colander and rinse with cold running water. Drain again. Dump into the ceramic insert of your crockpot. Stir in the chopped apple, onion, bay leaf and brown sugar, combining everything well together.
- Nestle the piece of pork down into the kraut mixture. Pour the boiling water over the kraut around the pork.
- Cover and cook on high for 5 to 6 hours until tender. Alternately cook on low for about 7 - 8 hours.
- To cook in a conventional oven, prepare as above placing everything into an oven-proof casserole dish. Cover tightly and bake at 325*F/160*C/gas mark 3 for 3 to 4 hours, checking periodically to make sure it doesn't cook dry and topping up with a bit more water if need be.
- Spoon the kraut onto a platter. Slice the pork into thick slices and add to the platter. Serve immediately with buttery mashed potatoes on the side.
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