Food & Recipes

• 4-5 tablespoons
  extra virgin olive oil or use melted vegan butter, if you prefer, to taste
• 1 cup
  diced celery
• 1 cup
  diced sweet or purple onion
• 2 large
  Granny Smith or other tart apples, peeled, cored and diced
• 1 teaspoon
  dried thyme
• 1-2 teaspoons
  mild gluten-free curry powder, to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon
  ground cinnamon
• 1 cup
  fresh cranberries, chopped
• 1 cup
  light vegetable broth, more, as needed
• 2 tablespoons
  pure maple syrup
•  
  sea salt, to taste
•  
  fresh ground pepper, to taste

1. Start by making a pan of your favorite gluten-free vegan cornbread. Here's one of my recipes for a delicious cornbread (you can leave out the green chilies in this recipe, if you like; or keep them in for an unexpected New Mexican flavor spike). Plan on making an 8-inch square or 9-inch round cornbread two to three days ahead; cut it up into 5 or 6 squares and freeze.
   Before making your stuffing, allow the cornbread to thaw a little bit. Cut the squares into cubes before it's totally defrosted. This makes for easier slicing and it will crumble much less.
2. To start the dressing, Preheat the oven to 325°F.
3. Toast the cornbread cubes on a baking sheet for about 20 minutes or so. Keep an eye on them so they don't get too browned. When they're nicely toasted remove the baking sheet from the oven, set aside and allow the cubes to cool.
4. Heat about 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large deep skillet, stir in the thyme, curry and cinnamon; add the celery, onion and apples; cook until softened. Remove the skillet from the burner and set aside to cool a bit.
5. Add in the chopped cranberries. Stir in the toasted cornbread. Mix well. Add a little more olive oil, and the broth, pouring in a little at a time and gently stirring to combine. Add the maple syrup. Stir. Season the mixture with sea salt and pepper to taste. (Some folks like a very soft dressing- if you are one of these, feel free to add more broth.)

Use for stuffing roasted acorn squash, or if you happen to be a turkey loving omnivore, grab your spoon and stuff away. Or bake the stuffing as a side dish in a casserole. For the casserole, spoon the stuffing into a baking dish, cover and bake at 350°F till heated through, about 20 to 25 minutes (note: it will take a bit longer to heat through if you made the stuffing ahead of time and chilled it). Serve as a side dish for vegetarian fare. Omnivores- if you'd like a more traditional approach to this recipe, use melted butter instead of the olive oil, use chicken broth, and add a beaten organic egg to the stuffing when you add in the broth.