This Cranberry Apple Stuffing is a family favorite. We love making it at Thanksgiving, but it’s so good we make it all year round. Although gluten-free stuffing may not seem like a big deal, it is to us. Since my older son and I both have celiac disease stuffing is not something we take for granted.
Gluten-Free Bread Recipes
We also cherish gluten-free bread recipes. Mine are all grain-free and paleo as well. I gave up gluten in 1998, and in 2001 I gave up all grains as well as corn, rice, and potatoes. If you’re in the same boat you’ll want to take a look at all of the amazingly easy and tasty creations on my Paleo Bread Recipes page!
Gluten-Free Stuffing Recipe for Thanksgiving
While stuffing is often a time consuming and complex dish to make, this recipe is a bit easier. It’s a traditional bread stuffing spiked with cranberries and green apples. I don’t bake my stuffing inside a turkey because it doesn’t bake evenly when prepared this way. I also like to brown this paleo stuffing in the oven so baking it separately is key.
Cranberry Apple Stuffing
Ingredients
- ½ cup dried cranberries, fruit juice sweetened
- ½ cup Chicken Stock or Kettle & Fire Bone Broth
- ¼ cup grapeseed oil or olive oil
- 2 cups chopped onion
- 1 cup finely chopped celery
- 2 inch medium Granny Smith apples, cored and chopped into 1 inch cubes (about 2 cups)
- ½ cup finely chopped Italian parsley
- 1 loaf Paleo Bread or Gluten Free Bread 2.0, cut into 1-inch cubes
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon celtic sea salt
Instructions
- Soak dried cranberries in chicken broth for 1-2 hours
- Heat oil in a 9 inch skillet, over medium heat
- Sauté onion until soft, about 15 minutes
- Add celery and sauté for 10 minutes
- Add apple and parsley and sauté for 3 minutes, until apples begin to soften
- Transfer mixture to a large bowl
- Bake bread cubes on a parchment paper lined baking sheet for 5-10 minutes at 350°F
- Cool for 20 minutes
- Stir bread cubes into vegetable mixture
- Whisk eggs and salt into cranberry-chicken broth mixture
- Add egg-cranberry mixture to stuffing, tossing to combine
- Transfer stuffing to a 9 x 13 inch baking dish
- Bake stuffing at 350°F uncovered until cooked through and browned on top, about 40 minutes
- Let stand 10-15 minutes
- Serve
This gluten-free Cranberry Apple Stuffing recipe is based on one I found in Bon Appétit. It has all the components of a good stuffing recipe! For me this includes bread (gluten-free of course), onions, celery, chicken broth, and eggs. These ingredients are the key to a good stuffing recipe!
Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Recipes
Here are some of my other healthy gluten-free Thanksgiving recipes for you!
Cristina says
What is the best way to reheat this? I made this wonderful stuffing this past weekend and I screwed it up when I put it in the oven to heat up before dinner. It tasted good, but I dried it out. Should I have put a cover on it? I really want to make this again.
Elana says
Cristina, yes just cover it when you reheat :-)
angela says
I am new to paleo as well as cooking in general AND it’s the first year that everyone is coming to my house for Thanksgiving!! I’m wondering if I can make this receipt the day before and how would I reheat it the day of?
Elana says
Angela, I prepare the stuffing the day before and then cook it the day of Thanksgiving.
Kathy says
So happy to read this! I love the recipe but it’s time consuming! So happy to make it today!
Samantha says
Wow. My traditional stuffing recipe with lots of butter and sage using GF bread this Thanksgiving was terrible (My first year being GF). This, however, using a mixture of GF sandwich bread and GF millet bread was wonderful – thank you!
Elana says
Samantha, thanks for letting me know this stuffing recipe is wonderful!
Katie says
I love the photo and I just stopped by to say that I used your recipe for this cranberry apple stuffing for our vegetarian thanks giving and it did not disappoint! Thank you sincerely for making me look like I can cook!
Elana says
Katie, thanks for letting me know you and yours enjoyed this stuffing recipe!
Rocknlocks says
Served this at our first GF TG dinner and it was a hit! In my opinion, it was a little on the dry side but that may have been due to the fact that my bread cubes were too big and didn’t absorb the broth and butter mixture as well as they could have. Loved that I didn’t have to use any rice flour which has a distinctive taste and can become tiresome to those who eat it often. I used the almond flour bread recipe (linked above) but made my own flour using unblanched almonds ground up in the Thermomix. It didn’t seem to make a difference though. Because I couldn’t find any organic cranberries, I improvised by turing this into a mushroom stuffing using mushrooms, celery, onions, butter and thyme instead of apples. Will definitely make this again, thanks Elana!
Elana says
Rock, I’m so happy to hear that this stuffing recipe was a hit at your Thanksgiving dinner :-)
Alta says
Ooh, I bet this is good! And I bet you feel stuffed afterwards – your bread recipes are so filling and satisfying. and the best part about your recipe? No carbo-overload!
Elana says
Alta, I totally agree! I love this lower-carb stuffing recipe :-)
Marie says
I just made this for Thanksgiving, and it was DELICIOUS! Even those who could eat the gluten filled stuffing ate it! Thank you so much for providing such great recipes. They really are a blessing to me!
Elana says
Marie, I’m so happy to hear this was DELICIOUS and that everyone at your Thanksgiving dinner loved it!
CC says
We enjoyed your Cranberry Apple Stuffing so much that it has become part of our new Traditional Gluten Free Thanksgiving menu! Thanks Elana!
Elana says
CC, I’m thrilled to hear that this stuffing has become part of your Thanksgiving menu!!!
Mars says
Thank you! I think this was the most popular dish of the meal. People had seconds and even thirds.
Elana says
Mars, thanks for letting me know this was the most popular dish at your Thanksgiving!
Iris says
I love the addition of dried cranberries in stuffing. I’m adding this to my Thanksgiving recipe roundup.
Elana says
Thanks Iris! I hope you love it as much as we do :-)