Favorite Stuffing Recipe Ideas

Gerard Klass's dressing, made with his jalapeno-flecked Cornbread, is flavored with fresh sage, rosemary and thyme. This chef and co-owner of Soul Bowl in Minneapolis says he's still chasing his mom's holiday dressing. But by our measure, he's there.

This hearty, colorful side dish will be just as happy alongside pork chops or chicken as it is on your holiday table with turkey.

We added walnuts, cranberries and seedy bread to classic sage-and-onion turkey dressing-and we did it in a slow cooker. The lidded appliance keeps the stuffing perfectly moist and, of course, frees up the oven for another pie.

Homey corn bread meets woodsy sage, thyme and shitake mushrooms. Carrots and apricots add color and sweetness.

We mixed corn bread with bread cubes as the base for a dressing studded with apples and dried cranberries. If you make your own corn bread, bake it the day before you make the stuffing; allowing it to dry just a little improves the texture of the stuffing.

You can serve this hearty, fruit-studded dressing with roasted or grilled pork, poultry or ham. The recipe comes from the historical Story Inn in Nashville, Indiana.

Mix crumbled bacon, nuts and fresh veggies with long grain rice for this stuffing, which can be chilled up to 24 hours before baking.

Whether you're looking to tweak your favorite dressing or create a new tradition, this method meets the challenge. Start with the basic recipe, then try one of the blends shown at left or craft a custom dressing.

Top right: Whole wheat bread anchors a mix of sweet potatoes, celery, almonds, apricots and sage.

Left: Wild rice stands in for bread in this dressing studded with button mushrooms, celery, bacon, pecans, golden raisins and thyme.

Bottom right: Sourdough bread cubes blend with cooked bulk Italian sausage, celery, dried cranberries, pine nuts and rosemary.

Combine sausage, chopped vegetables, toasted pecans, and a mix of cubed white bread and crumbled corn bread in this traditional stuffing recipe. To save time, substitute 3 cups corn bread stuffing mix (one 8-ounce package) for the crumbled corn bread.

Bake this fruit and nut stuffing in a casserole dish or use it to stuff a turkey. This sweet dressing goes well with pork, too.

Olives, Italian seasoning, Italian bread, and thinly sliced Genoa salami, prosciutto, or cooked ham put the Italian in this stuffing's name.

This stuffing highlights the flavors of shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, Italian sausage and dried currants, all mixed with seasonings, chopped vegetables and bite-size pieces of ciabatta bread.

Pears, toasted pecans and nutmeg create a festive twist on old-fashioned stuffing.

Use leftover corn bread or bake a package of corn bread mix for this stuffing. Sweet potatoes add moisture and color.