Impress Your Guests With This Tasty (And Healthy) Spelt Bread Stuffing Recipe

Source: Ronnie Fein / Ronnie Fein

Spelt Bread Stuffing w/ Dried Fruit & Herbs
Spelt bread makes an incredible, moist stuffing that’s lighter than regular bread stuffing. Sweet pears and fresh herbs add a beautiful layer of flavor to this dish that the whole family will enjoy. Serve with your favorite holiday sides.

8 cups spelt or rye bread (about 8-9 slices), crumbled or cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 tablespoon coconut butter (health food store)
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 shallots, minced
2 medium pears, peeled, cored, and chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 teaspoon sea salt or more to taste
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon poultry seasoning (preferably whole herbs, not ground)
2 tablespoons minced fresh thyme
1/4 cup chopped fresh oregano
1/2 cup dried cherries optional
2 1/2 cups hot vegetable stock or broth
2 ribs celery, finely chopped or 2 tsp. Celery seed

1. Preheat oven to 250°. Place bread cubes on a baking sheet and toast for 20 minutes. Increase oven temperature to 350°.

2. Preheat a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Coat with cooking spray and add butter. Add onion and shallots and cook for 5 minutes. Add celery, garlic and apples and sprinkle with sea salt, pepper, poultry seasoning, thyme, and oregano. Cook for 4-5 minutes. Turn off heat and scrape mixture into a large bowl. Add bread cubes, dried cherries, and hot stock or broth.

Mix well.

3. Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish (for drier stuffing) or 10-inch casserole dish (for moist stuffing) with cooking spray. Fill with stuffing mixture. Bake at 350° for 30-35 minutes. Serve hot.

PER SERVING: 145 cal, 8% fat cal, 1g fat, 1g sat fat, 3mg chol, 4g protein,29g carb, 5g fiber, 301mg sodium