NOTE: If you already have your own gluten-free stuffing cubes and are looking for a stuffing recipe, scroll down past the stuffing cubes recipe to find the Classic Sausage Stuffing recipe.
If you are interested in making your own stuffing cubes, then read on.
For most of us, being gluten-free is not a passing fad, or short-term diet, but rather a life-long commitment to our health and well-being. I have always said I could endure just about anything for a short period of time, especially knowing there will be an end. But living gluten and dairy-free will have to end for me. And that means, if I don’t make my food life as amazing and spectacular as I can, then I will be enduring something unpleasant for far too long.
For the first six or so years of my gluten-free life, I scoured the grocery stores looking for stuffing cubes weeks before Thanksgiving. It took some work, but I found options and made stuffing that was not bad, but not amazing either. I also tried “drying” store-bought gluten-free bread in an attempt to up my stuffing game. It was not bad either, but the bread did not have the texture or flavor I was hoping for and, in both cases, the stuffing was not good enough for my entire family at the time to eat. It was not close enough to “real” for them. I got it, and I understood, but the problem was, I felt the same way. I wanted what I remembered not what I had to accept.
Now after nearly seven years into my gluten and dairy-free baking journey, I still remember the first time I made these stuffing cubes and then made stuffing. I was blown away and had tears in my eyes. Finally, the stuffing of my memories and my dreams was now in my mouth!
The cubes were soft yet has a slight firmness and did not disintegrate as previous stuffing cubes had. So much flavor was coming from the cubes themselves, both from the herbs that are added to the recipe and the bread’s inherent flavors, not only from the other ingredients in the stuffing. And, my family loved it enough to declare it the only Thanksgiving stuffing we ever needed to make.
I tell you this story for two reasons. One, if you have had similar experiences or have felt the same way, I want you to know you are not alone. And two, this recipe is time-consuming and I want you to know that there are extreme and amazing benefits to putting in the work. And, as I will get to later in this post, there are other benefits to making the cubes.
For these stuffing cubes, you will be making two batches of bread: our sandwich bread recipe and our French bread recipe. The combination of the flavors from each bread brings unheard-of flavor to gluten-free stuffing, as well as a fantastic texture and mouth-feel. And after you bake the bread on sheet pans, you will then cut the bread into cubes and put the cubes back in the oven to “dry.” It is a multi-step process but, so worth it.
Finally, I have added my Classic Sausage Stuffing recipe to this post if you don’t have your own stuffing recipe. It’s highly flavorful and makes my heart sing. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I do.
Now, for the additional benefits to making these stuffing cubes: croutons and herbed bread crumbs. This batch of stuffing cubes will make 64 oz, which is much more than you will need for one Thanksgiving. So, why so much?
- The cubes will freeze well for a year or so which means you don’t need to make them again until Thanksgiving of 2023!
- You can use the cubes as croutons! Grab what you need from the bag in the freezer, thaw, and add to salad. Or, you can add them to a skillet and heat with Earth Balance or butter.
- And, you can make bread crumbs! Thaw your cubes and add to a food processor and pulse until you have bread crumbs. The herbs in the cubes give the bread crumbs a fabulous flavor.
If you have any questions about making this recipe, please send me a message here. I will respond within 24 hours.
discover. cook. enjoy.
Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Herbed Stuffing Cubes
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The Ingredients
Sandwich Bread Dry: Flours and Starches
- 90 grams garbanzo flour
- 180 grams sorghum flour
- 210 grams tapioca starch
- 210 grams corn starch
Sandwich Bread Dry: Supplemental
- 36 grams soy milk powder
- 50 grams sugar
- 15 grams kosher salt
- 9 grams xanthan gum
- 7 grams gelatin, unflavored
- 2 grams baking powder
- 4 grams herb mix, see recipe below
Sandwich Bread Wet Ingredients
- 32 grams honey
- 120 grams sunflower oil, can use canola
- 70 grams egg whites, Kirkland brand at Costco is the best!
- 8 grams vinegar, white distilled
- 2 large eggs
Sandwich Bread Yeast and Water
- 11 grams yeast, dry active NOT instant
- 2.75 cups carbonated water, use club soda or make with a soda stream
French Bread Dry Ingredients: Flour and Starch
- 275 grams rice flour, white
- 200 grams tapioca flour
French Bread Dry Ingredients: Supplemental
- 35 grams soy milk powder, can substitute milk powder if not dairy-free
- 12 grams xantham gum
- 8 grams gelatin
- 15 grams baking powder
- 29 grams sugar, granulated
- 13 grams kosher salt
- 4 grams herb mix, see recipe below
French Bread Wet Ingredients
- 70 g sunflower oil
- 120 g egg whites, 100%, no fillers
- 11 g distilled white vinegar
French Bread Yeast and Water
- 11 grams dry active yeast , NOT instant
- 2 cups carbonated water
Herb Mix
- 2 tbsp thyme, dried
- 2 tbsp parsley, dried
- 1 tbsp rosemary, dried
- 1 tbsp sage, ground
- .5 tbsp marjoram, dried
The Process
- This recipe makes 64 ounces, approximately, of stuffing cubes. The stuffing cubes can be made to make our stuffing recipe and can be used as croutons and also be ground up to make herbed bread crumbs.
Getting Ready
- Gather all your ingredients and group by type. Also. gather all the equipment needed for measuring and mixing. Measure out all your ingredients for each bread recipe. See instructions below on how to measure. You will mixing one right after the other and having all your ingredients ready will speed up the process. Do NOT heat the water and activate the yeast for either recipe until right before you are ready to mix.
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
Measure the Dry Ingredients
- Measure the flours and starches for the bread recipe and place in the stand mixer's bowl. Measure and add the supplemental ingredients to the same bowl as the flours. Add the herb blend to the bowl (4 grams).
- While you have your scale and dry ingredients out for the bread recipe, measure the flour, starch, and supplemental ingredients for the French bread recipe into bowls and set aside.
Measure the Wet Ingredients
- Measure each of the wet ingredients and then put in a small bowl. All the wet ingredients need to be in one bowl.
- While you have your scale and wet ingredients out for the bread recipe, measure the flour, starch, and supplemental ingredients for the French bread recipe into bowls and set aside.
Activate the Yeast
- Measure the yeast for the bread recipe into a small bowl. Also measure the yeast for the French bread recipe and set aside.
- If using club soda, measure 2.75 cups into a 4 cup measuring cup and heat to 110 degrees in the microwave, about a minute. Use a probe thermometer to test the temperature. If you heat the water to over 110 degrees, wait for it to reach 110 before activating the yeast.
- If using a soda stream, temp the water coming out of your facet to 110 degrees, fill the soda stream bottle, and carbonate the water. Measure 2.75 cups of the carbonated water into a 4 cup measuring cup.
- When you have your 110 degree water ready, begin whisking the water as you add the yeast slowly to the water. Keep whisking until nearly all the yeast has dissolved. You should see foam when you do this. If you do not, your yeast may be out of date or bad.
Time to Mix the Sandwich Bread Recipe
- Attach the mixing bowl to the stand mixer, attach the mixer's paddle attachment and raise the bowl into the mixing position. Set to speed 1 for 15 seconds to combine the dry ingredients. Add the wet ingredients while the mixer is still set at speed 1. You will need to use a spoon to get the honey out of the bowl. Now, add the yeast and water slowly. Once it is all added, increase the speed to 2 until all the water is incorporated into the dry ingredients. Increase the speed to 4 and mix for one minute. Increase the speed to 5 and mix for one more minute.
- While the dough is mixing, spray a large sheet pan liberally with non-stick spary. When the mixing is complete, the dough should be soft and silky, similar to frosting. Lower the bowl and remove the paddle attachment. Scoop out ALL the dough onto the greased sheet pan. Wet your fingers before you touch the dough to help with the stickiness. Spread the dough throughout the pan, making sure to get into the corners. Use a light touch. If you feel any high or low spots, smooth those with your fingers by pushing the dough around. When you are done, move the pan to the top of the stove.
Mix the French Bread
- Clean your mixing bowl and paddle and attach to the mixer. Add the dry ingredients to the bowl. Add the herb blend to the bowl (4 grams). Activate the yeast in the same way you did for the sandwich bread recipe. Add the yeast water and the wet ingredients as you did in the sandwich bread recipe and mix.
- When the French bread is done mixing, scoop ALL of the dough onto a greased sheet pan and spread and even the dough as you did with the sandwich bread recipe. When complete, place the sheet pan on the stove next to the sandwich bread sheet pan. Set a timer for 20 minutes.
Baking the Breads
- Put each sheet pan into the 400 degree oven on separate racks. Bake for 10 minutes and then rotate the pans. Bake for another 10 minutes. You may need to bake an additional 5-10 minutes until they are doe. They should have a golden brown color and be separating from the sides of the pan. Remove the pans from the oven and transfer the each sheet of bread to a cooling rack. Let cool about 15 minutes.
Slicing the Bread Sheets
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Slice the French bread sheet in half, and then in half again for each pieces, making quarters of the original full sheet. Then slice into 3/4 to 1 inch pieces, rotate, and then slice again in the same sized pieces. The goal is to have 3/4 inch cubes. You can make your cubes larger or smaller than 3/4 inch. Be careful not to make too small or they will burn while drying in the next step.
- Add a cooling rack to a sheet pan and place all the cubes on the cooling rack and distribute as evenly as possible. Bake in the 350 degree oven for 20 minutes or until the cubes are toasty but still have a slight spring to them. Remove from the oven and let cool.
- While the French bread cubes are drying in oven, slice the sandwich bread in the same way. You may need two sheet pans because the sandwich bread is thicker than the French bread. Bake in the 350 degree oven for 20 minutes or until the cubes are toasty but still have a slight spring to them. Remove from the oven and let cool.
Marrying the Two Types of Cubes
- In a very large bowl, add a small amount of the cubes to the bowl, alternating between the two recipes. The goal is to have an even distribution of the two types of cubes.
Storage and Usage
- To make the sausage stuffing recipe, you will need 16 oz of stuffing cubes. I recommend measuring out 16 oz of the cubes and place in a freezer bag. You should get four bags. Or, you can store all the cubes in one or two bags and measure out what you need when you need them. Cubes can be frozen up to one year. You may want to double-bag them for long-term storage.
- Use the cubes for stuffing, as croutons, or grind them (once fully cooled and dry) to make herbed bread crumbs.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Classic Sausage Stuffing
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The Ingredients
- 16 oz gf explorers stuffing cubes
- 1 lb pork sausage, Jimmie Dean Natural or Mulay's Breakfast Sausage
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 1/2 cup Earth Balance, melted
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 3 ribs celery, diced
- olive oil
- Kosher salt and pepper to taste
The Process
Mise en Place
- Remove stuffing cubes from the freezer. Dice the onion and celery and place in a prep bowl. Measure out the chicken stock. Measure out the Earth Balance and melt in microwave.
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Sweat the Veggies
- Heat about a tablespoon olive oil in a medium-sized skillet on medium-high heat. Add the onions and celery and a pinch of salt and pepper. Cook 5-7 minutes or until the celery and onions are softened but have no color. Removed from the pan to a bowl.
- Add the pork sausage to the skillet and cook until done. You will want to break up the larger pieces throughout the cooking process. When done, remove the sausage to a paper towel-lined plate or bowl. Let cool for about 10 minutes.
Combine All the Ingredients
- Add the stuffing cubes to a oven-proof dutch oven. I use an enameled dutch oven but a casserole dish with a lid or roasting pan with a lid will work too.
- Add the celery, onions, sausage, chicken stock, and Earth Balance to the dutch oven and mix to combine. You may use less of the celery, onion, and sausage than I do and the recipe calls for. It all depends on your tastes.
Cooking the Stuffing
- Cover the dutch oven and place in a 350 degree oven. Cook for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, remove the lid and cook for an additional 15 minutes.
- Remove the stuffing from the oven and serve directly from the pan or transfer to a serving dish. Enjoy!
