Living in the south has introduced me to a lot of different dishes that I’m not used to during the holidays.  “Down here we don’t stuff our birds.  Only Yankees would mess with a perfectly good bird.”

Unfortunately I forgot to take a picture of it after I baked it and don’t have a photo of the finished product.  It was delicious and far better than traditional Yankee White Bread Stuffing.

Since I had no idea what this stuffing was like, I took Paula Dean’s Recipe and combined it with my own cornbread recipe.  It’s takes a little bit more effort than buying a box or using plain wonder bread but it was well worth the effort.

Butter Milk Cornbread

	½	Cups	Butter
	2/3	Cups	Sugar
	2		Eggs
	1	Cups	Buttermilk
	½	teaspoon	Baking Soda
	1	Cups	Cornmeal
	1	Cups	All Purpose Flour
	½	teaspoon	Salt
	¼	Cup	Bacon Bits
	½	Can	Sweet Corn Kernels
	2		Jalapeno Peppers

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and grease 9 inch pan.

Seed and dice jalapenos and drain fluid from the can of corn.  Set aside.

Melt butter in large saucepan and remove from heat.  Stir in sugar and then add eggs.  Add baking soda, salt and buttermilk.  Continue to stir and add cornmeal and flour till well incorporated.  Fold in bacon and jalapenos.

Pour into greased pan and bake for 25-35 minutes or till toothpick comes out clean.  Cool and set aside.  This can be made a day ahead of time.

Cornbread Dressing

	1	Pan	Cornbread
	7	Slices	White Bread
	8	Tablespoons	Butter
	2	Cups	Celery, Chopped
	1		Onion, Diced
	1	can	Chicken Broth (14 oz)
	1	teaspoon	Sage
	2	Tablespoons	Chicken Bouillon
			Fresh Ground Pepper to Taste
			Salt to Taste
	5		Eggs, Beaten

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease 9 inch pan.

Crumble cornbread and tear apart white bread, set aside.

Melt butter in a large pot and cook celery and onions till transparent.  Add stock and sage, chicken bouillon, salt and pepper.  Remove from heat and add bread to stock.  Mix well and pour evenly into greased pan.  Bake for 45 minutes or till golden brown.

(You may reserve 2 Tablespoons of uncooked batter for giblet gravy.)