I have a short attention span, and while I love classic comfort food and holiday fare, today I’m sharing two of my favorites twists: Italian Ciabatta Bread Stuffing with pancetta and parmesan, and Carmel Apple Cake. These two make regular appearances on our holiday table, and while traditional apple pie and cornbread stuffing are great, I can promise you these two will not disappoint.

Italian Ciabatta Stuffing
Ingredients:
• 1 large loaf Ciabatta bread, cut into large cubes
o You can use day old bread, or cut the bread early and leave out over night to dry out a bit.
• 6 ounces cubed up pancetta
o This is Italian bacon. If you cannot find it in your store, you can use a thick cut bacon that you cut into strips.
• 1 large onion chopped into small cubes
o See my video if you’re wondering how to do this
• 1 very large carrot chopped into small cubes
• 2 celery stalks chopped into small cubes
• 1 tbsp dried rosemary or 2 tbsp fresh rosemary
• 2 tbsp dried parsley or 3 tbsp fresh flat leaf parsley
• 2 gloves minced or grated garlic
• ½ cup Parmesan cheese freshly grated
• 2 eggs
• 1 can chicken broth
• 6 tbsp unsalted butter
• Kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper

Directions:

Stage 1: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees, and grease a large glass-baking dish with butter. I use a 15x10x2 inch Pyrex, but you’ll need to adjust based on the amount of bread you have.

Stage 2: Cube the bread and place in a large bowl.

Stage 3: Sautee the pancetta or bacon over medium heat, and place on paper towel to drain. In the same pan sauté the onion, carrot and celery with the rosemary and parsley. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and stir occasionally until the onion is translucent.

Stage 4: Transfer onion mixture, and pancetta to the bowl with the bread. Mix everything together gently tossing until it is well combined. Add in as much broth as needed to moisten the bread mixture well. Check the seasoning, and if necessary add a bit more salt and pepper. Whisk eggs and then mix them in.

Stage 5: Place everything into the baking dish, and sprinkle with the cheese, and diced butter. Cover with a buttered piece of foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes until the top is crispy and browned. Serve immediately.

Carmel Apple Cake
Cake Ingredients:
• 4 large Granny Smith apples peeled, cored and thinly sliced
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• ½ cup vegetable oil
• ½ cup chopped walnuts
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 2 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. Kosher salt
• 2 eggs

Caramel Sauce Ingredients:
• ¼ cup heavy cream
• ¼ cup butter
• ¼ cup dark brown sugar
• ¼ cup sugar
• ¼ tsp. cinnamon

Directions:

Stage 1: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees, and grease a large glass-baking dish with butter. For this cake I use a 9x13x2 inch Pyrex.

Stage 2: Mix flour, salt, baking soda well and set aside.

Stage 3: Place sliced apples in a large bowl. Break the eggs over them and stir until all apples are covered in egg. Add in sugar and cinnamon and stir until combined.

Stage 4: Combine flour mid with the apple mixture and then place into baking dish. Bake for 45 minutes until the cake is browned and a toothpick can be tested in the middle and come out cleanly. Remove from the oven and cover with a towel to keep warm.

Stage 5: In a medium sized sauce pan over a medium flame melt butter. Add in all other ingredients and continuously stir until the sauce is fully incorporated. About 3 minutes. Turn off heat and either pour the sauce over the cake or serve on the side. Scoop the cake with a large spoon and serve immediately with vanilla ice cream.


About the main photo: Pancetta is a less smokey Italian bacon. Give it a try in this Ciabatta bread stuffing, and be prepared to go back for seconds.