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If you’re on the AIP and missing a traditional bread stuffing for your Sunday supper or the festive season, this Thanksgiving Stuffing just might do the trick!

Our recipe creator, Andrea, tried for YEARS to create an AIP Thanksgiving stuffing that satisfies like a gluten-filled bread stuffing. Yes, Years! For most, an all-veggie stuffing just doesn’t cut it. No one believes it’s the real thing. It doesn’t have the right taste or texture. And ain’t no one wanna spend extra time baking AIP-friendly bread just to use it in another dish that takes an hour to cook. It’s just too much work. Especially when you’re already overwhelmed with all the other AIP versions of Thanksgiving food you’re trying to cook at the same time.

Well, my friends, Andrea created a brilliant shortcut. It’s perfect. You don’t have to do any extra baking, but you still get that savory, bready texture you’re looking for in Thanksgiving stuffing. Even her non-AIP husband declared it to be “the BEST stuffing I’ve ever eaten. Ever!” Now there’s some high praise!

The Best Thanksgiving Stuffing

Name: The Best Thanksgiving Stuffing
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 12
Ingredients: 2 Tbsp - avocado oil (or AIP cooking fat of choice), divided; 1 - large yellow onion, peeled and diced; 4 - celery stalks, halved lengthwise and sliced; 16 oz - baby bella mushrooms, diced; 1 lb - ground pork (preferably free range & organic); 1/4 cup - dried cranberries (make sure to check ingredients for AIP compliance); 3/4 tsp - each sea salt, garlic powder, ground ginger, ground sage, thyme and rosemary; 1 cup - cassava flour; 1/2 cup - sustainable palm shortening; 1/4 cup - cold water

Yield: 12 servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour

♥ RECIPE & IMAGES BY: Andrea - Formerly "Hurried Health Nut" ♥

A heavenly AIP Thanksgiving stuffing made with onions, celery, mushrooms and pork. Plus, a grain-free bready topping with no extra baking!

Ingredients

2 Tbsp - avocado oil (or AIP cooking fat of choice), divided
1 - large yellow onion, peeled and diced
4 - celery stalks, halved lengthwise and sliced
16 oz - baby bella mushrooms, diced
1 lb - ground pork (preferably free range & organic)
1/4 cup - dried cranberries (make sure to check ingredients for AIP compliance)
3/4 tsp - each sea salt, garlic powder, ground ginger, ground sage, thyme and rosemary
1 cup - cassava flour
1/2 cup - sustainable palm shortening
1/4 cup - cold water

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350ºF and prep your vegetables.
Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add 1 Tbsp avocado oil to the skillet. When the skillet is warm, add the onion and celery and sauté for about 7 minutes, or until the vegetables start to soften.
Transfer to a large casserole dish.
Add the mushrooms to the skillet and sauté for about 3 minutes, or until starting to soften.
Transfer to the casserole dish.
Add one more tablespoons of oil to the skillet and add the ground pork. Break into small pieces (a potato masher or kitchen whisk make this task easier) and sauté until cooked through, about 7 minutes.
Transfer the pork to the casserole dish.
Add cranberries and seasonings to the casserole dish and toss well to combine everything.
Add cassava flour and palm shortening to a food processor and pulse until crumbles form. Continue to pulse and drizzle the cold water over the cassava mixture. When the crumbles are fairly even in size, transfer the mixture to the casserole dish. Toss lightly to combine.
Transfer the prepared casserole dish to the oven and bake at 350ºF for 35-45minutes, or until the stuffing is hot and the top begins to brown.
Serve with the rest of your holiday meal and enjoy!
Leftovers will store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. It reheats beautifully in both the oven and the microwave.

Notes

Serves a Crowd! This recipe makes a very large amount of stuffing. If you have a big crowd, it’s perfect. For smaller crowds, the recipe can easily be cut in half. All of the steps will be the same; just reduce the cooking time in the oven by about 10 minutes or so, and check often to make sure it doesn’t burn.

Not Into Pork? If pork isn’t your favorite, you can try another ground meat. Ground chicken or turkey would work great for a lighter version.

Can I make this AIP stuffing ahead of time? Yes! Follow all the steps and then cover and save in the fridge for 1-2 days. To reheat, just remove the cover and pop it back in the oven at 300º for about 20 minutes, or until heated through.

With thanks to Andrea (formerly Hurried Health Nut). When Andrea decided to close her website I reached out and she lovingly agreed to allow her recipes to live on at the AIP Recipe Collection so that folks around the world can continue to enjoy her whole-food recipes that provide maximum nourishment with minimal effort.