Priscilla's Tesuque Thanksgiving Southwest Dressing and yet another southwestern-style recipe!

My late sister made this incredibly delicious stuffing for the first time at our Thanksgiving celebration in 1991.  She still lived in Tesuque, New Mexico, and we had a wonderful time visiting her there.  I have great memories of that particular holiday.  Over the years I made the dressing even when my young children (and who can blame them?) turned up their noses at the nontraditional ingredients found in the recipe.  

Now, it is a ritual for me to make this dish.  I think of my sister while I make it, think about the fun we had making it together for the first time, and really, that is all I require of it.  The fact that it is absolutely delicious is a bonus!

I have taken a few liberties with the original ingredients.  I substituted red peppers for green because green peppers do not agree with me.  Why I can't eat them and love all the other, hotter peppers, is a great mystery to me.

Also, I have substituted craisins for raisins.  The taste and color are more appealing to me.

Recipes are "suggestions", really.  Play around with this one and "tweak" it to satisfy your own palette.

My sister would expect nothing less from you!

Priscilla’s Tesuque Pinon Dressing

(this recipe is adequate for a 10-12 pound turkey)

Ingredients:

1/3 cup craisins

1/3 cup tequila or mescale

2 large red peppers

2 green chilis (or one small can chopped green chili)

1 large chopped onion

1 or 2 minced garlic cloves

½ cup butter

4 cups dry bread crumbs

2 T minced cilantro

1 teasp salt, or to taste

¾ tsp dried oregano (or 1 Tablesp fresh)

½ tsp chili (I use chipotle or ancho for a smokier taste)

½ tsp dried sage (or 1 Tablesp fresh)

ground pepper to taste

1 cup pinion nuts, lightly toasted

Directions:

Soak craisins in tequila or mescale for at least 30 minutes.  Roasts and char skins of peppers, close in small paper bag and steam for 10-15 min.  Peel and remove seeds, pat dry, and chop coarsely.  Drain craisins and discard tequila.

Melt butter in large skillet over low heat.  Add onion and garlic, cook until tender.  Add mixture to dried breadcrumbs, then add cilantro, salt, oregano, chili powder, sage, and pepper.  Fold in pinon nuts, craisins, pappers, and chilis.

This can (and should!) be made the day before.  The flavors need time to meld.

Preheat oven to 500.  If stuffing turkey allow a bit more cooking time.  Otherwise,

350 to bake stuffing in casserole.

*Broth may be added to increase moisture of the stuffing and also as a way to reduce the butter content.

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And now, here is another recipe that is quite similar.  I'm thinking that I might meld the two of these recipes together.  The idea of putting some apples into the mix really appeals to me.  Check this out:

This dressing has a very similar look to my sister's version.

Dorothy’s Southwest Stuffing

This is wonderful as is, or with traditional gravy, if you like.  To make it vegetarian, substitute vegetable broth for the chicken broth.

• 1/2 cup golden raisins
• 1/2 cup currants
• Splash of sherry (dry rather than sweet sherry; optional)
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 3 ribs celery, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, seeds and stem removed and roughly chopped into strips
• 3-4 cloves garlic, peeled and finely minced
• 2 (6-ounce) bags seasoned cornbread stuffing mix (12 ounces total)
• 1 (15-ounce) can corn, drained
• 1 (4-ounce) can diced green chiles
• 2 apples, cored, peeled and chopped into chunks
• 1/2‑1 cup toasted pecans, chopped roughly
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• A few shakes red pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon chile powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground sage (or a few leaves of fresh sage, minced)
• Low-salt, fat-free canned chicken broth (have 2  15-ounce cans on hand)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a large, lidded baking dish with nonstick spray and set aside.

Put raisins and currants in a 2-cup glass or plastic measuring cup, cover with water by 1-1 1/2 inches, and microwave on high for 2 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside to soak while you prepare the rest of the stuffing. (Add a splash of sherry to the water if you wish; this is optional).

In a large skillet, melt butter and sauté onion, celery and red pepper until it softens, about 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently; you do not want it to brown. Add minced garlic toward end of sautéing time so garlic doesn’t burn. Remove from heat and set pan aside.

Put dry stuffing mix in your largest mixing bowl. To this, add sautéed onion mixture, drained raisins and currants, drained corn, diced green chiles, apple chunks and roasted pecans. Using large wooden spoons or your hands (more fun!), toss gently to combine.

Sprinkle cumin powder, red pepper flakes, chile powder and ground sage over, and toss gently, again, to combine well. You want the spices to be distributed evenly throughout.

Heat 1 can chicken broth (you can do this in a measuring cup in the microwave) and add small amounts at a time to the stuffing, tossing with your wooden spoons between additions, until the stuffing is moistened but not wet. You will use at least 1 can of broth. I recommend you have 2 cans on hand, just in case your mixture still seems too dry, but you probably won’t use too much of the second can. One trick is to mix it up using 1 can of broth, and let it sit undisturbed for about 5 minutes, to let the moisture spread evenly. Then if it is still too dry, begin slowly adding a portion of the second can. Add additional broth with a light hand, because if mixture is too wet, it will turn into concrete stuffing.)

Spoon stuffing into a greased baking dish with a lid (or one that can be covered tightly with foil); don’t pack it in, just spoon it lightly. If it won’t all fit into one dish, portion it between 2 dishes. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes.

Serves 8-12, depending on appetites and how much else you have on the table!

Ingredient note: Currants are like tiny, dark raisins, made from the seedless Zante grape. You can find them in the supermarket aisle with raisins.

Cook’s note: Do not try to “taste test” this stuffing after you have it all mixed together and before baking, because the herbs and spices might taste harsh. With some dishes, at the point before you bake it you can taste test it to make sure all the spices are right, but not with this one. It really takes baking to marry these spices, so if you taste it while it is still “raw” you will not get an accurate taste test.