Farro, Butternut Squash, Sausage and Dried Cherry Stuffing

Farro, a healthy whole grain, adds a nutty bite to stuffing’s traditional flavors with sausage, butternut squash and sage with a sweet taste of dried cherries.

This post and its bountiful Thanksgiving flavors is sponsored by Jones Dairy Farm. 

At my house it’s called stuffing.

Drunk with chicken stock, brimming with celery, onion, and butter, and perfumed with sage, this bread concoction is always cooked in the bird and comes out supremely moist. Yes, I did say “moist.” Moist. Moist. Moist. It’s how I prefer my stuffing.

At your house you may refer to it as dressing.

To me dressing delivers a dryer bite. Something maybe even a little crunchy. A bit more austere, perhaps even a little stark.

Not like my beloved stuffing. It’s my favorite part of the feast.

When Jones Dairy Farm asked me to contribute this stuffing recipe for their site Stuffing and More, the distinction between stuffing vs. dressing was quickly abandoned at the sidelines. We’re talking stuffing here. All day.

And yes, do go ahead and help yourself and feel free to go back for seconds. You’re totally going to want to.

The site offers up recipe tips, recipe demonstrations and cooking tips. Basically any and all things Stuffing! So if you’re wondering where to start with anything stuffing to serve alongside the bird or holiday ham, it’s a good place to begin your recipe search.

Jones Dairy Farm’s sausage is made up of just six ingredients. The same six ingredients they’ve used 126 years ago. You know what that means? No filler. No byproducts. Just sausage. All-natural and gluten-free, you can tell the difference in their sausage the minute it hits the fry pan.

About the Recipe

This stuffing recipe bridges the gap between stuffing and dressing. Nutty farro, sweet butternut squash, dried cherries and sausage combine with traditional bread cubes to create a stuffing worthy of the dignity of a dressing. And you can decide on your “moisture” level by adjusting the amount of chicken stock to your taste.

It starts with traditional stuffing flavor builders: butter, celery and onion. But instead of dried sage I used a handful of freshly slivered sage leaves for that not-to-be-missed Thanksgiving taste. Don’t skimp too much on seasoning with the salt, it dials in the flavors in a big way.

While I’ve used fresh cut bread chunks in stuffing before, I tend to go with an old fashioned dried bread cubes. It’s probably just because it’s what I grew up with and still crave today.

Instead of nuts or rice, I fortified this side with the ancient, whole grain farro (read more about these good for you grains) gives this stuffing a bit of a bite and an extra dose of health benefits you’d otherwise miss.

Butternut squash and dried cherries add a bit of sweetness to this savory side. I love the play of sweet and savory together. What’s your fave?

If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment below or take a photo and tag me on Instagram with #foodiecrusheats.

5 from 3 votes

Farro, Butternut Squash, Sausage and Dried Cherry Stuffing

Farro, a healthy whole grain, adds a nutty bite to stuffing's traditional flavors with sausage, squash and sage with a sweet taste of dried cherries.

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Ingredients 

1x2x3x

• 1 cup farro
• 3 ½ cups chicken broth divided
• 1 ½ cups water
• 1 12 oz Jones Dairy Farm All Natural Pork Sausage Roll
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 2-3 stalks about 1 cup celery, chopped
• 1 yellow onion about 1 cup, chopped
• 1 ½ cups butternut squash cubed
• 2 tablespoons fresh sage slivered
• 1 tablespoon Italian parsley chopped
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1 10 oz box stuffing
• 1 cup dried cherries

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Instructions

• Click here to get the full recipe directions.

Food for Thought

While I love the extra flavors in this recipe, I’ll always be a fan of a super straight forward stuffing with just celery, onion, sage and bread cubes. What’s your favorite flavors to stuff on your plate?

You can find Jones Dairy Farm products at fine retailers in Wisconsin and nationwide. Search for your nearest location here.

This post is sponsored by Stuffing and More and Jones Dairy Farm. As always, thank you for reading and for supporting companies I partner with, which allows me to create more unique content and recipes for you. All opinions are always my own.  

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