Sausage, Fruit & Nut Dressing

Directions

1. Herbed Cornbread: In a medium bowl, stir together cornmeal, flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. In small bowl, beat eggs and stir in 4 Tbs vegetable oil, milk, 1/3 cup parsley and 1 Tbs sage. Stir wet ingredients into dry; stir just to mix and turn batter into greased 8x8-inch baking pan. Bake in a 400 degree F. oven for 20-25 minutes, until lightly browned. Let cool, crumble coarsely and let stand overnight, covered loosely, to dry. Makes 8 cups.
2. Cover dried apples with warm water and let soak for 30 minutes. Drain well and chop. In a large skillet, crumble sausage and saute with onion and celery until sausage is cooked through and vegetables are soft, about 8-10 minutes. Place prepared dried cornbread (from previous step) in a very large mixing bowl, add the apples, sausage and sauteed vegetables, the pecans, apricots, the 1/2 cup chicken broth, herbs (sage, thyme, rosemary) and salt and pepper to taste. Mix well and place dressing in a large shallow casserole and bake for 15 minutes in a 375 degrees F. oven; spoon additional 2/3 cup chicken broth over top and bake for 10 minutes more.
3. If making dressing ahead, proceed with recipe through mixing of all ingredients, place in casserole, cover and refrigerate overnight. Increase initial baking time to 30 minutes.