Happy (almost) thanksgiving everyone! What a joyful season we are settling into. While I tend to be one who is very susceptible to the busyness and to-dos that often coincide with the dawn of the holidays, I adore Thanksgiving as it initiates and infuses the season with a focus on profound gratitude.
For me, it’s second nature to get caught up in a whirlwind of deficits: what I haven’t done, what I don’t have, what I haven’t fixed, what God “hasn’t fixed”, etc. When I foster this perspective (which can be very insidious) I am completely blind to the blessings that abound. While this year has been more difficult in terms of life’s circumstances and certain transitions, I feel more grateful than ever for every breath, every working body part, every person God has uniquely placed in my life, every student, every dollar, every capability, and even every struggle because my dependence on God is strengthened all the more.
1 Thesselonians 5:18-Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
With that, I leave you with a killer recipe for chorizo & cherry stuffing. I have had several requests for this recipe, so I promise you and your loved ones will be nothing short of satisfied.
Happy thanksgiving and buen provecho!
- ~8 cups or 1 8X8 pan's worth of cooked cornbread, preferably a day old, coarsely crumbled
- ½ cup dried cherries
- 1 lb chorizo
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 2 jalapeños, seeds removed, diced
- ½ onion, diced
- 3-4 stalks celery, thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 4-5 sage leaves, thinly sliced
- ½ cup pecans, coarsely chopped
- ½ stick butter
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 2 eggs
- salt and pepper
- 1 lb chorizo
- Heat oven to 350 F. Butter a large casserole dish. Crumble the cornbread pieces into the dish and toast for about 15 minutes to dry the cornbread out a bit more.
- Meanwhile, add cherries to a cup of very hot water to rehydrate for about 10 minutes.
- In a large skillet, cook chorizo on medium high heat, breaking into small pieces, until cooked through. Use a slotted spoon to remove and combine with cornbread pieces.
- In the same skillet, drizzle in a little olive oil and cook jalapeño, onion and celery for about 10 minutes on medium heat. Toss in garlic, sage and pecan pieces for about 5 minutes until soft and very fragrant. Add to cornbread and chorizo mixture. Drain cherries and add them to cornbread mixture.
- Melt the butter in a large microwave-proof bowl. Whisk in chicken broth and 2 eggs. Salt and pepper the liquid.
- Pour liquid over the cornbread mixture to evenly coat. Cover with foil and cook for about 30 minutes. Then, uncover and bake until the top is brown and crisp, about 15 more minutes. (If, for any reason, the stuffing looks a little dry at this point, drizzle a little more chicken broth over the surface for the last several minutes of cooking).
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