Bourbon Bacon Stuffing Muffins (because....bacon!)

Any other time of year, I am not normally a fan of stuffing.  But then something magical happens in November and all of a sudden, stuffing and turkey and cranberry sauce become the most magical, desirable foods ever.  Growing up, stuffing was a staple of the traditional Thanksgiving dinner, but it primarily came out of a red box with yellow words.  It's not a bad by any means - it's quick, easy and tasty when slathered in gravy.  But a few years back, I decided it was time to step up my stuffing game and try something from scratch, and I discovered a fantastic combination of bourbon, bacon and bread to make Bourbon Bacon Stuffing Muffins!

It's like the trifecta of Thanksgiving stuffing!!!


A few things to know before you get started....

The recipe for Bourbon Bacon Stuffing Muffins is very easy - however, you will need to plan just a bit if you want to stale your bread on the counter.  It can be toasted in the oven in a pinch, but I prefer making sure the bread is good and dry to start.

I prefer King's Hawaiian Bread for this stuffing.  The sweetness of the bread combined with the bourbon nicely offset the savory flavors of the bacon and herbs.  I'll usually buy a 12 pack of rolls and cut them into dice-sized cubes to dry on the counter.

I also prefer using a maple bourbon instead of just plain bourbon. The alcohol will cook out of the pan, but using the maple bourbon leaves a nice sweet flavor.

OK....let's get to makin' bacon!!

Bourbon Bacon Stuffing Muffins

Ingredients:
7 cups freshly dried bread cubes  (cut fresh bread into dice size and leave out for about 3-4 days prior to dry)
12 oz bacon
2 tbsp bourbon
1 large onion - chopped
2 stalks celery - diced
4 cloves garlic
1 large granny smith apple - chopped
1 cup pecan pieces
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
4 tsp chopped fresh thyme
4 tsp fresh sage
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 large egg
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth or stock
butter

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F
Put the bread cubes into a large bowl - set aside.
In a frying or sauté pan, brown up the bacon.  Set the bacon aside, but keep all of the grease.   If you don't have a decent amount of bacon grease, melt in a little bit of butter (you want to have enough grease in the pan to saute the veggies in). When all the bacon is cooked, turn off the flame for a few minutes (you don't want the grease to get cold - you just don't want it scorching hot).

CAREFULLY add the bourbon.  The oil will spit and bubble when you do (this is why you let it cool off just a bit).  Use a spoon to scrape up all the good brown bits off the bottom of the pan (called Fond).

Turn the heat back on to medium -low, and add the onion, celery and apple.  Let the veggies hang out for just a bit - stirring every once in a while.  When they look mostly softened, add the garlic and continue cooking for another few minutes (you'll start to smell the garlic, it'll look slightly translucent).   The veggies won't bake very much in the oven, so if you don't like a lot of bite in your stuffing, make sure they're nice and soft and caramelized.

Remove from heat and stir in the herbs, pecan bits, cooked bacon (crumbled) salt and pepper.

I love having an herb garden!!!

Add the veggie and herb mixture to the bread cubes and stir well.  Whisk the egg and broth together and pour over the bread mixture slowly.  How much liquid you use depends on how moist you want the stuffing to be - some people prefer a more dry-ish stuffing.  So add a little at a time and let sit a few minutes before adding more (you may not use all of the liquid).

Generously butter 9 nonstick muffin cups.

Spoon 1/2 cup of stuffing mixture into each muffin cup.  Press to compact.  Mound another 1/2 cup of stuffing mixture over top molding into a dome and pressing lightly to keep the shape.

Bake muffins until golden about 22-25 minutes.  Remove from oven and cool in the pan for another 15 minutes.  Using a small spoon, loosen the muffins and pop them out of the pan.

If you're making these well before dinner, bake them for only about 15 minutes and let cool to room temperature, cover and refrigerate.  When prepping for dinner, cover loosely with foil and bake in a 350 degree F oven for 15 minutes.



This is my adaptation of a recipe that I cannot source because I don't have the original to give credit to.  If the original recipe  is yours, please let me know and I'll be happy to add your name and website to this post.