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For years I used the Pepperidge Farm bagged stuffing as the base (it was herb, it was crouton style, it was cornbread), with my mushroom, celery, onion and sausage and a little chicken stock overall. It tasted pretty damn good. Then in some fancy foodie magazine or newspaper article I read about packaged stuffings not cutting it!
For the last few years I have used cubed bread stuffing that you buy in the supermarket which is fresh bread cubed. Works all right except you need a ton more stuff.
So blessings upon you all for making me feel better about going back to Pepperidge Farm again maybe this year.

My mom puts mushrooms in her Pepperidge Farm Herb Seasoned dressing. It gives it amazing flavor. Glad to see it on the list.

You might also let your bird rest at room temp. on the counter for a little while to take the chill off before frying. Good luck!

I don't know how your fryer works, but perhaps pre-heating it for a longer period of time will help to get the oil to a point that is hot enough when you start. If the oil is at 380, that should be fine. Check to see if it will get warmer than that with time.

The bird must be lowered VERY slowly into the oil. Longer cooking won't make a difference as far as crisping goes. The oil needs to be at the right temp and remain hot enough to crisp the skin.

@mongoose' used oil suggestion makes sense. If you don't have used oil, you could probably sweet talk a few cups from any restaurant with a deep fryer.

Have a great holiday. Let us know how it goes.

Why should one be more comfortable calling it "stuffing" only when it is baked in the bird and "dressing" when baked in a casserole pan? I recognize that the term "stuffing" implies "to stuff," as in to stuff the bird with it. But why is "dressing" more appropriate for it when baked in a casserole pan? The term "dressing" could be equally read to imply "to dress," as in it dresses something. In the case of baking it in a casserole pans, is the something that is "dressed" the casserole pan? Of course, not! What is "dressed" is THE BIRD or the plate on which it is presented. Just as the bird is stuffed with it, the bird is dressed (up) with it. I take the position that the terms "stuffing" and "dressing" are equally inapt when referring to what is baked in a casserole pan.

I have lived in Missouri (St. Louis) all my life. We always called the second meal of the day "Lunch", and the last meal of the day, "Supper". Although Dinner and Supper could be used interchangeably My husband's family did the same thing.. I notice my older siblings are now calling it "dinner" when they invite us over. I have always used the word Supper unless we are going out to a formal meal, then I will call it Dinner.

We have always used the word soda. My uncle used to call it sodie.

I have used the Martin's before last time 2 years ago. I however prefer Wegmans "W" loaf which makes the best stuffing. Also a fave Del Buono's rolls (NJ) I used to go get those the day before hot out of the oven and that was some great bread for stuffing.

My dressings are like my chilis- similar, but never the same twice.
Could be a combo of fresh bread and store bought croutons; might toss a little wild rice in, could add apples, dried cranberries or chopped apricots, sausage or not, mushrooms or none, but it always tastes great.

It's fun to change it up a little every year (just a little). Otherwise the family gets stuck in a food funk and loses the fun of adventure in eating.

I also love Stovetop, and Cheerios, too! There's nothing wrong with a classic.

I don't even have to wait for bread to go stale! Our grocery store sells big bags of sliced, dried bread ... like long skinny croutons ... at T-giving time. I love it. Homemade is always better. Lately, I've been baking a pan of cornbread a day or so ahead of time to crumble into it. All delectable.

Manatee!!!

Last year, I decided to try a new approach on the stuffing. I love sour dough bread, so I dried the bread and used it with my favorite recipe. The flavor was awesome, but it was very soggy, but I like soggy, so was great for me. A mix of sour dough and another drier type bread would be good, if texture is important. coco