Cranberry Apple Stuffing is a slightly sweet and deliciously savory side dish with classic holiday flavors. It all starts with a box of herb-seasoned stuffing cubes, tossed with buttery sautéed veggies, sweet apples and a handful of craisins for that perfect cozy, holiday touch.
Serve with plenty of fluffy mashed potatoes and classic potato rolls! Follow up with the classic, traditional Pumpkin Pie with Sweetened Condensed Milk for dessert.
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⭐ Why Melinda Loves Cranberry Apple Stuffing
Whether you call it stuffing or dressing, this comforting dish is one of those nostalgic recipes that is often the best part of a holiday meal!
Like my make-ahead Better Than Boullion Gravy, it's a great holiday recipe to prepare a day or two in advance.
No need for the hassle of drying and prepping cubed bread. Just use store-bought, herb-seasoned boxed stuffing, which is a great time saver.
🍏Ingredients to Have on Hand
This easy Thanksgiving stuffing recipe is the definition of comforting, crowd-pleasing holiday food. It’s easy to prepare, packed with fall flavor, and is a perfect side along with Elegant Green Bean Casserole for your holiday turkey, slow-cooker ham or roasted chicken any time of year.
Here's all you need:
Herb-Seasoned Cubed Stuffing: Use whichever brand you prefer; I like Mrs. Cubbison's. (Photo below) Another great recipe that uses store-bought stuffing is my Chicken and Stuffing Casserole.
Apples: Granny Smith apples provide the perfect amount of sweetness and tartness to the sweet craisins and savory cubed stuffing. Scroll down to the Recipe FAQS section for tips on other varieties of apples to use. If you have apples on hand, but sure to make Fresh Apple Cake too!
Celery, Onion, and Mushroom: These ingredients provide that traditional, savory flavor to the baked stuffing. They cook to tender perfection in herb-infused butter before the stuffing casserole is assembled.
Sage and Thyme: These two fresh herbs are the secret to this recipe turning out perfectly. The herbs release all their distinct and delicious flavor in the melted butter before the veggies and apples are sautéed.
Craisins: Dried cranberries add distinctive holiday flair and a touch of sweetness to the flavor in this baked stuffing recipe. Plus, they are delicious with the sliced apples!
Scroll to the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
📖Substitutions and Variations
There are plenty of great options for adjusting this baked holiday stuffing and making it distinctive and perfect for your family!
Add cooked, ground sausage to the stuffing ingredients for a protein boost and a savory flavor boost.
Chopped walnuts add a unique texture and flavor to the stuffing side dish. Blend ½ cup of walnuts with the other ingredients, then sprinkle a few additional tablespoons on top.
Dried fruit in place of Craisins, you can use raisins or any other dried fruit.
🥣Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: In a large frying pan on the stove, heat the pan to medium and melt the butter. Place the sprigs of fresh thyme and sage in the butter and stir gently for a few minutes as the herbs release their delicious flavor into the heated butter. (Photo above.)
Step 2: Add the diced onion, celery, mushrooms and apples. (Photo above.)
Step 3: Cook for about 10 minutes or until the vegetables start to soften. The apples will still be fairly firm.
Step 4: While the veggies and apples are cooking in the butter, place the seasoned bread cubes into a large bowl.
Step 5: Place the cooked veggies and apples in the bowl with the cubed stuffing, then add the dried cranberries.
Step 6: Stir all the ingredients together. Slowly sprinkle the chicken (or vegetable) broth over the ingredients and stir to combine until the stuffing is damp, but not soaking wet.
⭐Pro Tip
Avoid pouring all the chicken or vegetable broth into the stuffing mixture at once. Sprinkle about ½ cup at a time over the ingredients in the bowl. Stir and give the stuffing cubes a few seconds to absorb the broth. Continue adding more broth until the ingredients are damp, but not soaking wet.
Step 7: Pour the stuffing mixture into the prepared baking dish and sprinkle pepper across the top. Bake as directed in the recipe!
💭 Recipe FAQs
Yes! Prepare the stuffing according to the recipe, but instead of baking it, cover with foil and refrigerate. Let the dish sit on the counter for 30-45 minutes at room temperature before baking.
Golden Delicious or Honeycrisp apples also work great in this recipe.
🥘 What to Serve with Cranberry Apple Stuffing
Many traditional and savory holiday recipes go great with this baked stuffing recipe. My favorites include Cranberry and Orange Sauce for the perfect, tangy topping to everything from sliced turkey to servings of this stuffing and mashed potatoes!
Homemade Creamed Corn is wonderful with the stuffing. It's a cozy, corn side dish that simmers in a buttery cream sauce.
Orange-Spiced Sweet Potatoes are delicious with this recipe; the sweet and creamy potatoes are topped with puffy marshmallows and orange zest, and are fantastic with this savory stuffing.
👩🏻🍳 Leftovers and Storage
Store letters in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. To reheat, warm the leftover stuffing covered in the oven at 350°F until heated through.
Reheating in the microwave? Just sprinkle a teaspoon or two of water over the stuffing and warm it up until heated through.
Pro Tip
For the best leftovers, sprinkle a little water over the top of the stuffing before reheating—it helps bring back that just-baked, fresh-out-of-the-oven texture and flavor.
🍽 Other Tasty Holiday Dishes
Cranberry Apple Stuffing is a traditional and oh-so-delicious holiday side dish. Here are more of my favorite recipes for the holidays.
If you make Cranberry Apple Stuffing, I'd love to hear how it turned out. Please leave a 🌟 star rating and a comment below. I'm looking forward to hearing from you!
Recipe
Melinda O'Malley Keckler says
(From Melinda) This is one of my family's favorite holiday recipes and I can't wait to hear what you think of it too. It's the perfect combination of slightly sweet and savory!