When I started pulling together recipes for my Gluten & Dairy Free for the Holidays recipe book there was one recipe from last Thanksgiving that I just couldn’t find. It was a breadless stuffing that had all the flavor of stuffing, without the usual bread. It was the most perfect contradiction of healthy comfort food I’d ever tasted…
Well, in an effort to recreate that recipe, I tried a little something new and I gotta say, this one turned out even better than last year’s.
I added butternut squash and cauliflower to give it a little more heft and “bready-ness” or maybe I should say carby-ness, cause I know I’m not fooling anyone with this. It is clearly all vegetables.
I thought about trying to use a gluten-free bread, or making my own pumpkin bread, which I still think would be delicious if anyone out there wants to give it a try and report back.
If I’m being totally transparent, this ended up this way because I just so happened to have half a butternut squash already cut up in my fridge (I mean, when does that ever happen?) and a head of cauliflower that I needed to use.
And this this was born…
This recipe would work just as well with sweet potatoes, which I’ll admit are much kinder to work with. If I make this again, that will probably be the route I go, just FYI…
I will say, this breadless stuffing is a little more involved of a recipe than my norm. If you’ve been here awhile you know minimal ingredient, one pot or one pan meals are my jam. I still like to get a little more fancy every now and then and what better time than Thanksgiving, am-i-right?
Especially if you’re bringing a dish to contribute and not having to worry to about a bird and all the other things…
What makes this feel so fancy I think is the combination of flavors, mainly the herbs.
Just Add Herbs
Really though, if you want to dress anything up, add herbs (here’s a great herb guide on how to use them).
Funny, the Roasted Roots recipe from the holiday recipe book is the same recipe I use to roast any veg during the week. I just keep it super simple, fewer vegs (usually 1-3) and just season with salt and pepper.
How about you…
What recipe do you already know how to make that you could fancy up with some herbs?
What holiday favorite could you simplify (or healthify) to bring more joy to a random Thursday night?
Share em with us in the comments, will you? We’d love to hear!
Wishing you and yours a very happy and delicious Thanksgiving holiday!
Breadless Stuffing with Butternut Squash and Sage
- 1 small head cauliflower, cut in small florets
- 4 cups butternut squash, cut into small cubes
- 3 tbsp avocado oil (or extra-virgin olive oil)
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 stalks celery, sliced small
- 8 oz baby bella mushrooms, chopped small
- 1 apple, diced small
- 8-10 sage leaves, finely chopped
- ½ tsp dried thyme
- 2 tbsp parsley, finely chopped
- sea salt
- black pepper
- Preheat oven to 400°. Place cauliflower and butternut squash on a baking sheet (tip: line with parchment paper for easy clean up) and toss in oil (about 1-2 tbsp). Season with salt and pepper. Roast at 400° for about 30 minutes, until browned.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the rest of the oil to the pan, then add onion and sauté 5 min. Add mushrooms and continue sautéing, stirring occasionally, 5-10 minutes until they shrink up. Add garlic, and celery and cook another 5 minutes. Add apple, thyme and sage and cook another 2-3 minutes.
- When roasted vegetables are done, combine everything together in a serving dish. Add parsley, season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately or store in fridge to reheat later.
