Un-Stuffed Sausage Stuffing

Full disclosure: Thanksgiving isn't really my meal.

Don't get me wrong, it's a delicious plate of food. And I love the opportunity to hang out with friends and family around the dinner table. But if you really think about it, the typical American Thanksgiving plate is about as beige as can be. And now that I don't really eat sweets, the pies and crumbles and crisps aren't the draw that they used to be.

But I am a big believer in tradition. Especially family traditions. They anchor us to our true selves when the world gets topsy-turvy. So even though I've reformed my meal-planning, I'm not willing to completely abandon one of my family's best-loved holidays.

This Un-Stuffed Sausage Stuffing is my attempt to de-beige our Thanksgiving spread. It is savory and tart and bright and packed with nutrients. It tastes amazing with a little (primal) gravy and adds another source of animal fat to an otherwise poultry-heavy day.  It's also great reheated with fried eggs in the morning (if you somehow end up with left-overs).

Enjoy!

Un-Stuffed Sausage Stuffing

See: It's only a little bit beige.

Ingredients

1 12 oz package breakfast sausage

16 oz mushrooms, diced

1 head celery, diced

1 yellow onion, diced

3 cups diced butternut squash

1 cup dried cherries, chopped

2 tablespoons poultry seasoning

1 tablespoon olive oil

Salt and pepper

Instructions

In a large skillet heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and celery and season with salt and pepper. Cook until onion becomes translucent. Add breakfast sausage and cook until sausage is brown. Add mushroom and poultry seasoning and cook until mushrooms are tender and most of the water is boiled off (otherwise you will end up with stuffing soup).

In a medium baking dish, combine sausage mixture, butternut squash, and dried cherries. Bake at 400 degrees until squash is tender. About 45 minutes.