Three-Pepper Sausage Cornbread Dressing

Preparation 1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 2. Heat olive oil in large flat-bottomed sauté pan over medium high heat. Add sausage and sauté until browned, approximately 10 minutes. Remove to a large bowl and set aside. 3. Add onion to the pan and reduce heat to medium, then sauté until onion begins to turn clear and soften, approximately 5 minutes. Add celery and peppers and continue cooking until peppers begin to soften, approximately 10 minutes. 4. Pour vegetable mixture into bowl with sausage, add chopped cilantro, salt and pepper to taste, and toss to mix. 5. Return pan to heat and deglaze with a splash of chicken stock, then scrape contents into bowl with sausage and vegetable mixture. 6. Pour mixture into a large roasting pan and add cubed cornbread, mixing by hand. Add chicken stock to moisten, cover with aluminum foil, and place in oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until it is soft and the flavors well incorporated. If youdesire a crunchy top, remove foil for final 10 minutes of cooking. Dressing can be made ahead of time and reheated when needed. If dry upon reheating, add additional chicken stock. From the Book, Thanksgiving: How to Cook it Well by Sam Sifton. Copyright © 2012 by Sam Sifton. Reprinted by arrangement of The Random House Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. Sam Sifton is the national editor of The New York Times, that newspaper's former restaurant critic, and a food columnist for the Sunday Times Magazine. Before coming to the Times, where he has also worked as the culture editor and the editor of the Dining section, he worked as a newspaper reporter and editor, a teacher in the New York City public schools, a first mate on a century-old schooner, and a prep cook. Sam Sifton lives in Brooklyn with his wife and two daughters.

Preparation 1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 2. Heat olive oil in large flat-bottomed sauté pan over medium high heat. Add sausage and sauté until browned, approximately 10 minutes. Remove to a large bowl and set aside. 3. Add onion to the pan and reduce heat to medium, then sauté until onion begins to turn clear and soften, approximately 5 minutes. Add celery and peppers and continue cooking until peppers begin to soften, approximately 10 minutes. 4. Pour vegetable mixture into bowl with sausage, add chopped cilantro, salt and pepper to taste, and toss to mix. 5. Return pan to heat and deglaze with a splash of chicken stock, then scrape contents into bowl with sausage and vegetable mixture. 6. Pour mixture into a large roasting pan and add cubed cornbread, mixing by hand. Add chicken stock to moisten, cover with aluminum foil, and place in oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until it is soft and the flavors well incorporated. If youdesire a crunchy top, remove foil for final 10 minutes of cooking. Dressing can be made ahead of time and reheated when needed. If dry upon reheating, add additional chicken stock. From the Book, Thanksgiving: How to Cook it Well by Sam Sifton. Copyright © 2012 by Sam Sifton. Reprinted by arrangement of The Random House Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. Sam Sifton is the national editor of The New York Times, that newspaper's former restaurant critic, and a food columnist for the Sunday Times Magazine. Before coming to the Times, where he has also worked as the culture editor and the editor of the Dining section, he worked as a newspaper reporter and editor, a teacher in the New York City public schools, a first mate on a century-old schooner, and a prep cook. Sam Sifton lives in Brooklyn with his wife and two daughters.