Crockpot Stuffing

Holy Week. Easter is Sunday and there will be no Easter dinner at the Thunderbolt house. No twenty-four people. No plywood table. No children in the yard. No ham at five a.m. No grace said over a table so crowded you can't move your elbows. The virus took Easter dinner, and I am angrier about that than I am about almost anything, because Easter dinner is sacred in this family and sacred things should not be cancelled by microscopic organisms.

But. But. I am Dorothy Henderson and I do not surrender to circumstances, including pandemics. I cooked the full Easter dinner anyway. The ham. The dressing. The greens. The mac and cheese. The sweet potato pie. The deviled eggs. I cooked for twenty-four people even though I'm the only one here, and then I packaged it into individual portions and I drove around Savannah on Easter morning delivering Easter dinner to porches.

Denise and Robert: ham, dressing, pie. Kayla: ham, greens, mac and cheese, and a note that said "Eat. Sleep. You are saving lives." Miss Corrine: a full plate wrapped in foil, enough for two meals, with extra cornbread because she loves cornbread and she's eighty-five and I will not ration cornbread for an eighty-five-year-old woman in a pandemic. The Washingtons: the same. Monique and James: the same. Six stops. Six porches. Six doorbells rung and six quick retreats to the car.

I watched from each driveway as the doors opened. Denise waved. Kayla blew me a kiss through the glass. Miss Corrine stood in the doorway in her housedress and put her hand on her heart. The Washingtons both came to the door and Mr. Washington saluted — actually saluted, like I was a general delivering rations, which I suppose I am.

I came home and I ate my Easter dinner at the table. Earl's plate was set. I said grace: "Lord, this is the loneliest Easter I've ever had, and I'm grateful for every minute of it because I'm alive to have it. Amen." Then I ate the ham and it was good.

Now go on and feed somebody.

The dressing is always the thing people remember. Not the ham — everyone expects the ham — but the dressing is what people taste and go quiet over, and I was not about to let a pandemic take that from anybody. I made it in the slow cooker so I could keep the oven free for everything else, and honestly, this method is so reliable that I’m not sure I’ll ever go back. If you’re feeding a crowd, or packaging up six households’ worth of Easter plates to leave on porches, this is the dressing that holds up — warm, savory, and exactly what it’s supposed to be.

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 3 hrs | Total Time: 3 hrs 20 min | Servings: 12

Ingredients

1 cup (2 sticks) butter
2 cups celery, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
1 teaspoon dried sage
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
12 cups dry bread cubes (about 1 large loaf, day-old or toasted)
2 1/2 to 3 cups chicken broth
2 large eggs, beaten

Instructions

Sauté aromatics. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add celery and onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 8–10 minutes. Stir in poultry seasoning, sage, thyme, salt, and pepper. Remove from heat.
Combine. Place bread cubes in a very large bowl. Pour the butter and vegetable mixture over the bread and toss to coat evenly.
Add liquid. Whisk together the broth and beaten eggs. Pour over the bread mixture, starting with 2 1/2 cups. Toss gently — the bread should be moist but not soggy. Add remaining broth as needed.
Fill the slow cooker. Lightly grease a 6-quart slow cooker with butter or cooking spray. Transfer the stuffing mixture into the slow cooker and spread evenly. Do not pack it down.
Cook. Cover and cook on HIGH for 45 minutes, then reduce to LOW and cook for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, until the top is lightly set and the edges are golden. Keep the lid slightly vented with a wooden spoon for the last hour to let steam escape.
Serve. Fluff gently with a large spoon before serving. Taste and adjust salt if needed. Serve warm directly from the slow cooker, or portion into foil-covered containers for delivery.

Nutrition (per serving)

Crockpot Stuffing — The Dressing That Fed Six Porches on Easter Morning