Gluten-Free Kabocha Squash Stuffing

Let’s face it. The best stuffing for the Thanksgiving table relies on slightly stale bread, tossed with sautéed vegetables and bathed in a lot of hot turkey stock. But the bread itself doesn’t matter — so go gluten-free! If you’re the person who likes the exact same dinner every year, you might not like this stuffing. But why not play with the template of a recipe and make it a slightly different? This year, we’re tossing cubes of kabocha squash into our stuffing, for a sweet softness against the toasted cubes. This taste of autumn makes sense for Thanksgiving. Just try it — you might change things up this year too.
Ingredients:

• 1 loaf gluten-free bread
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 large yellow onion
• 2 celery stalks
• 2 cups small kabocha squash cubes
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh sage
• Salt and pepper
• 3 cups hot chicken stock
• 2 large eggs, beaten

Instructions:

1. Toasting the bread. Heat the oven to 350° F. Spread the bread cubes on a baking sheet. Put the baking sheet in the oven and toast the bread. After 10 minutes or so, toss the bread cubes around. When all sides are toasted, about 20 minutes, take the bread out of the oven.
2. Cooking the vegetables. Set a large skillet over medium-high heat. Put in the butter. When the butter has melted, add the onion and celery. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are soft and translucent, about 7 minutes. Add the kabocha squash and cook for 5 minutes. Add the fresh sage until the scent of the herb releases into the room, about 1 minute. Season the vegetables with salt and pepper to taste.
3. Tossing together the stuffing. Toss the softened vegetables with the toasted bread cubes. Be gentle. The bread will be fragile. Put the stuffing into a greased 8 x 12-inch casserole pan.
4. Turn up the temperature of the oven to 400°.
5. Whisking the eggs and stock. Whisk the eggs vigorously and slowly drizzle in some of the hot stock. When you’ve added about 1/2 a cup of the hot stock, pour the eggy stock back into the hot stock. Pour this stock evenly over the stuffing. Tent the casserole pan with tin foil.
6. Baking the stuffing. Bake the stuffing for 30 minutes, then take off the tin foil. Bake until the bread cubes are firm and browned on top and all the ingredients appear to be bound together, about another 10 minutes. Serve immediately.

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