what is your favorite turkey dressing recipe?

I use Martha Stewarts recipe, and I'm telling you..you *have* to try it. We make double because it's so freakin good. I'm not kidding. I'm working on thanksgiving, but I'm making a turkey and stuffing the day before just to eat it. Try it. Seriously. Oh here's the turkey recipe too:)

Celery-herb Stuffing Makes about 10 cups; Serves 12

7  tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for dish and baking

1  loaf rustic white or Italian bread, crusts removed, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 9 1/2 cups)

1  celery root (about 1 1/2 pounds), peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice

 Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

2  tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

3  celery stalks, thinly sliced on the diagonal

2  medium onions, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced in half-moons

2  garlic cloves, finely chopped

1/2  cup extra-dry vermouth

1/2 to 1 3/4  cups homemade or low-sodium store-bought chicken stock

1/2  teaspoon poultry seasoning (such as Bell's)

3  tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

3 1/2  teaspoons finely chopped fresh sage

2  teaspoons finely chopped fresh thyme

2  teaspoons finely chopped fresh rosemary

4  large eggs, lightly beaten

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Melt 5 tablespoons butter in a skillet. Toss with bread cubes in a large bowl. Spread in a single layer on 2 rimmed baking sheets. Toast in oven, tossing once, until golden, about 20 minutes. Let cool completely.

2. Place celery root in a medium saucepan; add salted cold water to cover. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer until soft, about 15 minutes. Drain; set aside.

3. Heat oil and remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat until butter has melted. Add celery, onions, garlic, and a pinch of salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and soft, about 20 minutes.

4. Put celery root, vegetable mixture, and toasted bread into a bowl. Return skillet to medium heat. Add vermouth; cook, scraping up browned bits with a wooden spoon, until it bubbles. Pour over bread-vegetable mixture. Stir in 1/2 cup stock, the poultry seasoning, and herbs; season with salt and pepper. Stir in 4 eggs.

5.Stir 1 1/4 cups stock into stuffing, spoon into a buttered 13-by-9-inch baking dish, and dot generously with butter. Cover with foil, and bake in a 375° oven 25 minutes. Uncover, and bake until golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes more.

Roast Turkey With Herb Butter and Rich Gravy Serves 10; Prep time: 1 hour; Total time: 5 hours The herb butter can be made a day ahead and refrigerated. Return to room temperature before using.

8  tablespoons butter, room temperature

1 1/2  tablespoon each chopped fresh rosemary, sage, and thyme

 Coarse salt and ground pepper

1  whole turkey (about 18 pounds), thawed if frozen, rinsed and patted dry, neck reserved (set aside giblets for stuffing, if desired)

6 to 8  large carrots, halved crosswise

3  large onions, cut into 8 wedges

3  stalks celery, halved crosswise

1. Preheat oven to 350°, with rack in the lowest position. Make herb butter: In a small bowl, mix together 6 tablespoons butter with chopped herbs; season generously with salt and pepper.

2. To prepare and stuff the turkey: Turn turkey over; bend wing tips underneath bird so they stay in place (you may have to break the bones). Loosely fill large cavity with stuffing.

3. Using cotton kitchen twine, tie legs together securely (they will overlap) so bird retains its shape and moisture during cooking.

. Working from the neck end, slide fingers under skin until you reach the end of the breast, being careful not to tear the skin. Rub herb butter under the skin.

5. Cut neck into pieces; mix with carrots, onions, celery, and 2 cups water in a large roasting pan. Set roasting rack over vegetables in pan.

6. Lift turkey onto rack breast side down; rub with remaining tablespoon butter. Season generously with salt and pepper. Tent turkey loosely with foil. Roast 1 hour, then baste every 30 minutes with pan liquids, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of thigh (avoiding bone) registers 125°, about 3 hours.

7. Remove foil; raise oven heat to 400°. Continue roasting, basting occasionally, until thigh reaches 180°, 45 to 60 minutes more. Tent with foil if bird browns too quickly; add more water if pan becomes dry. Transfer turkey to a serving platter; cover loosely with foil, and let it rest at least 30 minutes before carving.

Note: After transferring turkey to a serving platter, reserve vegetables and turkey neck for our Rich Gravy.

Rich Gravy Makes 6 cups; Prep time: 45 minutes; Total time: 45 minutes

 Vegetables and turkey neck roasted under the Roast Turkey

1 1/4  cup dry white wine

2/3  cup all-purpose flour or equivalent of cornstarch

10  cups water

 Coarse salt and ground pepper

1. Take the finished turkey out of the roasting pan to rest before carving. Place the pan on stove acr

Believe it or not, Stove Top Dressing (chicken flavor)from the box. It is so easy, and I am always asked for the "recipe". I just say it is a family secret because I am embarrassed to tell the truth.

By the way, I don't think the Stove Top Dressing in the turkey flavor is as good as the chicken flavor.

To make turkey gravy, remove turkey from pan. Drain off all but about 6 tablespoons of the fat. Stir the bottom of the pan well to get all those good browned on bits loose. Have about 2 tablespoons of flour with enough water to cover it in a jar with a lid. Shake that well to completely mix in the flour. Add that to the pan and stir well. Then add a packet of McCormick's turkey gravy (the dry mix) to a cup of water and mix that well. Add that to the gravy mixture in the pan. If you want more gravy, add more of the McCormick's dry turkey gravy mixed with one cup of water. This is easy, delicious, and completely lump free.

Cornbread dressing. boil whole chicken in water w/ one onion cut up, 4 stalks of celery, couple cloves of garlic minced and seasoning. While doing that bake a cornbread. De bone the chicken and taste the broth and see if it needs seasoning. Crumble the cornbread and then add the chicken with the vegetables and mix then pour broth till it is very wet (mixture will make a spanking noise when tapped with spoon) bake in oven preheated to 350 for about 45 mins or till edges are golden brown.

Gibblet Gravy. Take the packet out of the chicken. Place in sauce pan with enough water to cover the giblets. Add chopped onions, garlic and celery. Boil till tender then in cup mix water and flour till no lumps then stir into the pan.

Good luck

I make a wild rice dressing that my kids love. Basically, I use Uncle Ben's original recipe wild rice, with 2/3 cup of converted rice to stretch it out. Cook as directed on the box, but double the water. When done, pour into baking pan, add sliced almonds, and top with bacon slices. Bake until the bacon is crispy, then crumble the bacon into the rice. I usually make 4 or 5 boxes, because it is really good as leftovers. We don't really like a lot of gravy, so I really don't have a good recipe for that.

The recipie on the Pepperidge Farm seasoning pack is very good.

So is the one on the Bell's' Seasoning box.

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Gravy is Water, Flour or Corn starch, fat or oil, salt & seasoning.

The key to success is to thoroughly mix some of the flour or corn starch with COLD water before adding to hot anything.

My basic recipe is based on my Mom's, ratios, but my method is my own.

2 Cups of water (Tap water or from cooked veggies. *See note at bottom.)

1 TBSP Flour or Corn Starch >>>(FCS)

1 TBSP grease from drippings

1 TSP Salt

1 TSP Kitchen Bouquet.

Pan drippings (Meat Juice- NOT grease)

Mix FCS thoroughly in cold water. Used ~ 1/2 cup of cold water if you're going to used veggie water.

In a saucepan or the roasting pan (with excess grease removed), add water and all ingredients.

Turn burner on high.

STIR constantly with a wisk

Bring to a full boil for atl least a minute. This is what makes the gravy thicken.

Then reduce to a simmer. If the grease content is too high, the gravy will be very shiny. If so. mix a small amount of FCS with as small an amount of cold water as possible to thoroughly dissolve.

Add mixture to gravy stir constantly and return to boil as above.

When satisfied with consistency, taste.

Other seasonings to add, based on taste:

More salt and/or Kitchen Bouquet

Worcestershire sauce

Pepper

Onion powder

Lemon juice

Hot Sauce (Texas Pete, Louisiana, Crystal...)

Also - With Turkey you'll have more grease than you need, but some leaner cuts of beef or pork, may provide little or no grease. You can substitute corn oil or butter in these cases if desired.

For gravy with Asian flair, Sesame oil is good.

If meat juice is in short supply, you can add a bullion cubes. (For beef use beef. For poultry use chicken. For pork use one beef & one chicken.)

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*The best veggie water for gravy comes from peas, green beans, corn, carrots and any of the a fore mentioned cooked with onions. Stay away from water used to cook broccoli, brussels, cauliflower, spinach, turnips, rutabagas...

My mom makes the classic cornbread dressing, only she uses Mexican Cornbread....and Oh My Gooodneessss!! It is soooooo good! She does use the drippings from the turkey, but I have no idea how to make it, nor do I have her gravy recipe, sorry....

I have to get it by next week though! YIKES!