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October 5, 2022 By Julia Pinney Leave a Comment

Make Ahead Herb and Walnut Stuffing

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You know you can’t beat a great stuffing. And this Make Ahead Herb and Walnut Stuffing is just what you need to go on your dinner table this fall. This easy to make stuffing is loaded with chewy walnuts, lots of herbs and fluffy pieces of bread for the perfect side dish. A great side to serve at any Sunday dinner or Thanksgiving.

Walnut stuffing in a bowl.
Make Ahead Herb & Walnut Stuffing

We are rapidly approaching the holiday season and I know a whole lot of you are searching for those prep ahead side dishes already. This Make Ahead Herb & Walnut Stuffing, much like the Apple and Cranberry stuffing, can be made a day in advance. Yes! And, I vow by my Potato & Spinach Gratin as a great holiday make ahead dish as well. Do you like to prep in advance too?

Over head view of thanksgiving stuffing on a table.
Herb and Walnut Stuffing


Ingredients

  • Bread crumbs – I used a mix of cubed bread and bread crumbs for this stuffing. It makes a great texture
  • Onion – Finely diced white onion.
  • Nuts – Roughly chopped walnuts add a nice earthy flavour the stuffing.
  • Fresh herbs – I used fresh flat leaf parsley for my fresh herb.
  • Dried herbs – Dried rosemary and dried thyme add a nice flavour to the stuffing.
  • Seasonings – Garlic powder, onion powder, salt and black pepper.
  • Melted butter – adds a nice richness to the stuffing and gives a boost of flavour
  • Chicken broth – Keeps the stuffing moist as well as adds flavour.

REMEMBER, The full recipe and instructions can be found at the end of the post in the recipe card.

Ingredients to make Stuffing

Instructions

  1. In a large bowl, add you breadcrumbs and mix in the butter. Use your fingers to incorporate the butter completely into the breadcrumbs. Toss in the walnuts, onion, rosemary, parsley, salt and pepper. Give a good mix around until it is combined well. Put the stuff in a small but deep baking dish. Bake uncovered for about 35-40 minutes. Remove from oven and cover to keep warm until ready to serve.
  2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees f/180 degrees c. Grease an 4 x 6 deep sided baking dish (or equivalent size)
  3. In a large bowl, combine the bread crumbs, garlic powder, onion powder, rosemary, thyme, salt, pepper and fresh parsley. Stir to combine and set aside.
  4. In a large skillet set over medium heat add about 1 tablespoon of the butter. Add the onions and sautee them down until they are soft, about 5 – 8 minutes. Add remaining butter and allow it to melt for a minute. Pour in the chicken stock and whisk. Bring to a simmer for about a minute. Remove from heat.
  5. Add the bread crumb mixture to the skillet and stir really well to completely combine.
  6. Pour the stuffing mixture into the prepared baking dish and flatten out with the back of a spoon. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and serve.
Making stuffing in a glass bowl.
Combine bread crumbs with seasonings
Cooking onions to make herb stuffing.
Add onions to a hot skillet
Sauteed onions in a white skillet.
Cook onions for 5 – 8 minutes until soft
Adding butter to onions in a skillet.
Add butter to the skillet
Melted butter and chopped onions in a white skillet.
Melt the butter for about a minute
Adding chicken broth to a skillet.
Pour in the chicken broth and bring to a simmer
Bread crumb mixture in a white skillet.
Add the bread crumbs to the skillet
Bread crumb stuffing in a skillet.
Stir really well
Stuffing in a baking dish.
Press into a greased baking dish
Stuffing in a casserole dish.
Remove from oven
Stuffing in a casserole dish.
Fluff with a fork or spoon and serve

Recipe Tips

  • Type of bread to use – Any kind of sandwich bread is recommended for this recipe. It’s soft and works great for stuffing. Please avoid using baguette or rustic bread. These breads are drier and therefore your stuffing will be drier.
  • Making the bread crumbs – I like a mix of cubed bread as well as rough bread crumbs. It makes for a nice texture. So I cubed half of the bread into small 1/2 inch pieces and put the rest through the food processor.
  • Use the correct size dish – Stuffing needs to be baked in a deep sided casserole style dish. If you sue a shallow dish, the stuffing will dry out. So make sure it’s about 3 inches deep.
  • Make ahead – This stuffing can be prepared and put a covered baking dish and kept in the fridge up to one day before baking. This is a great idea for holidays and entertaining. Just remove from fridge bake uncovered as per baking instructions just before serving.
Make ahead walnut and herb stuffing.
Make Ahead Stuffing

Substitutions

  • Bread crumbs – I used whole wheat sliced bread for this recipe. I decided to cube half of the bread and turn the other half into rough bread crumbs. You can choose to cube all of it or even have all of it as rough bread crumbs. As well, you can use white sandwich bread for this recipe.
  • Walnuts – These were my choice of nuts for this stuffing. You can leave them out or substitute with pecans, chopped raw almonds or even pistachios.
  • Herbs – Okay, so really anything will work. It depends on what flavours you are looking for. I used fresh parsley and dried rosemary and thyme. You could use fresh rosemary, fresh thyme or even sage will go great.
  • Serving size – You will see in the recipe card that this serves six people. However, you can easily make this recipe for a larger group. Just try the serving changer in the recipe card.
Close up of stuffing in a dish.
Walnut and Herb Stuffing

Serving Suggestions

Stuffing is a timeless side dish that goes with so many different dishes. You can’t beat it with Fluffy Mashed Potatoes, Caramelized Onion Gravy and a Lemon and Rosemary Roasted Chicken. Apart from those classics, here’s a few more dishes you might like to serve with this Herb Stuffing.

  • Simmered Pork Tenderloin Pot Roast
  • Roasted Spatchcock Chicken
  • Slow Cooker Lemon & Rosemary Chicken
  • Crispy Roasted Potatoes
  • Potato and Spinach Gratin
  • Easy Parmesan Roasted Asparagus
Stuffing in a bowl with a spoon.
Stuffing with Walnuts and Herbs

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between stuffing and dressing?

Although the two are used interchangeably, technically they are different. The term stuffing is traditionally used when you place the stuffing inside the cavity of a chicken or a turkey. Dressing on the other hand, is also “stuffing”, however, it’s baked in a casserole dish or on the stove top.

Do you have to dry bread cubes for making stuffing?

Many recipes use dried out bread for stuffing and dressing. However, this recipe is much easier just using bread straight from the bag. No drying necessary.

Stuffing in a casserole dish with a napkin.
Walnut and Herb Stuffing
cranberry and apple stuffing in a wooden bowl
Cranberry and Apple Stuffing
Roasted Turkey with Cranberry Stuffing close up
Roasted Turkey with Cranberry Stuffing
close up of the mashed potatoes
Fluffy Mashed Potato Recipe

Walnut stuffing in a bowl.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Make Ahead Herb and Walnut Stuffing

You know you can't beat a great stuffing. And this Make Ahead Herb & Walnut Stuffing is just what you need to go on your dinner table this fall. This easy to make stuffing is loaded with chewy walnuts, lots of herbs and fluffy pieces of bread for the perfect side dish. A great side to serve at any Sunday dinner or Thanksgiving.
Prep Time15 mins
Cook Time40 mins
Total Time50 mins
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: North American
Keyword: rosemary, stuffing, walnuts
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 273kcal
Author: Julia Pinney

Ingredients

  • 6 cups bread crumbs About 10 slices of bread
  • 1 small onion finely chopped
  • 1/2 Cup walnuts roughly chopped
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
  • 1/2 teaspoon Salt
  • 1/2 Fresh ground black pepper
  • Small bunch of fresh parsley roughly chopped
  • 1/3 cup butter melted
  • 1 cup chicken broth
US Customary – Metric

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees f/180 degrees c. Grease an 4 x 6 deep sided baking dish (or equivalent size)
  • In a large bowl, combine the bread crumbs, garlic powder, onion powder, rosemary, thyme, salt, pepper and fresh parsley. Stir to combine and set aside.
  • In a large skillet set over medium heat add about 1 tablespoon of the butter. Add the onions and sautee them down until they are soft, about 5 – 8 minutes. Add remaining butter and allow it to melt for a minute. Pour in the chicken stock and whisk. Bring to a simmer for about a minute. Remove from heat.
  • Add the bread crumb mixture to the skillet and stir really well to completely combine.
  • Pour the stuffing mixture into the prepared baking dish and flatten out with the back of a spoon. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and serve.

Notes

  1. Type of bread to use – Any kind of sandwich bread is recommended for this recipe. It’s soft and works great for stuffing. Please avoid using baguette or rustic bread. These breads are drier and therefore your stuffing will be drier.
  2. Making the bread crumbs – I like a mix of cubed bread as well as rough bread crumbs. It makes for a nice texture. So I cubed half of the bread into small 1/2 inch pieces and put the rest through the food processor.
  3. Use the correct size dish – Stuffing needs to be baked in a deep sided casserole style dish. If you sue a shallow dish, the stuffing will dry out. So make sure it’s about 3 inches deep.
  4. Make ahead – This stuffing can be prepared and put a covered baking dish and kept in the fridge up to one day before baking. This is a great idea for holidays and entertaining. Just remove from fridge bake uncovered as per baking instructions just before serving.
Nutrition Facts
Make Ahead Herb and Walnut Stuffing
Amount Per Serving (1 serving)
Calories 273 Calories from Fat 72
% Daily Value*
Fat 8g12%
Saturated Fat 3g19%
Trans Fat 0.4g
Polyunsaturated Fat 3g
Monounsaturated Fat 2g
Cholesterol 7mg2%
Sodium 540mg23%
Potassium 139mg4%
Carbohydrates 34g11%
Fiber 3g13%
Sugar 4g4%
Protein 6g12%
Vitamin A 148IU3%
Vitamin C 1mg1%
Calcium 114mg11%
Iron 3mg17%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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Filed Under: Recipes, Salads & Sides Tagged With: christmas, side dishes, stuffing, thanksgiving, thanksgiving side dishes

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