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Bacon & Pear Slow Cooker Stuffing

November 13, 2016 By Lori 7 Comments

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Fall pears are the star of this delicious stuffing made in your slow cooker

Thank goodness for a slow cooker. You have to love a device that cooks a delicious side dish quietly on the countertop all day while you are running around making all the other stuff. Then as a bonus, it keeps it warm while all my guests get ready to settle down to eat… I’m hugging my slow cooker right now…

Everyone has a recipe for dressing or stuffing. Some like a “stuffing” that’s pressed into the cavity of the bird and cooks away, absorbing all the moist juices of the bird. Others believe it should be a “dressing” that is cooked separately and tends to be a bit more fluffy or crispy. I like a bit of both. I like to make dressing outside the bird (as my mom did), but I like it to be really moist and flavourful.


Bacon & Pear Slow Cooker Stuffing_3 I can’t emphasize enough the need for you to try this Bacon & Pear Slow Cooker Stuffing. IT IS AMAZING!!! Once you’ve tried it you’ll never make your old stuffing again. I usually make a traditional stuffing that consists of bread, onions, celery and spices. It’s great with the turkey and lots of gravy – love it. This dressing however takes dressing to a whole new level. The smoky flavour of the bacon combined with the sweetness of the pears and cranberries results in a side-dish I could eat as a meal, just amazing.

Let me take you through the process:

Pears First, these gorgeous fall bosc pears were stilling on my countertop calling out to be made into something.

Chopped Pears Bacon & Pear Slow Cooker Stuffing step one – chop up the pears

Chopped stuff Bacon & Pear Slow Cooker Stuffing step two – chop up all the other stuff. Easy so far, right?

I don’t have stale, dry, crisp bread cubes on hand (if you do, skip this step), so I baked some off…

Bread Cubes_before_after2 Then all you do is cook up some bacon, mix all the ingredients (follow recipe below) onto a slow cooker and let it cook away on low…

Bacon & Pear Slow Cooker Stuffing_in pot2 Lift the lid after 4 hours and look… the most amazing stuffing ever! Moist, but not rubbery. Really fluffy and packed with flavour.

Bacon & Pear Slow Cooker Stuffing_2 Bacon & Pear Slow Cooker Stuffing_1 Look at all the bacon, pears, cranberries, celery and stuffing goodness… Happy Holidays!

Bacon & Pear Slow Cooker Stuffing

5 from 1 vote
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Servings 8 -10 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 12 cups bread, cut into 1” cubes (whole wheat or sourdough)
  • 1 500 g package of bacon, cut into 1/2 “ pieces (I used maple bacon… yum!)
  • 4 Tbsp butter
  • 1 cup red onion, chopped
  • 5 celery ribs, chopped
  • 3 eggs
  • 2 cups chicken broth
  • 1 tsp dried sage leaves
  • 1 tsp poultry seasoning
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ½ tsp pepper
  • 4 Bosc pears, cored and diced
  • 1 cup dried cranberries

Instructions
 

  • Spread bread cubes over two baking sheets and bake at 400ºF for 15 minutes. Bread should be crispy and dry.
  • In a large skillet, brown bacon until cooked. Remove from pan and set aside. Drain off bacon fat and clean pan.
  • Add butter and over medium high heat cook onions and celery for 10 minutes until soft. Return bacon to pan and heat through.
  • In a small bowl, whisk eggs and chicken broth, set aside
  • To a slow cooker, add bread cubes, sage, poultry seasoning, salt, pepper, pears and cranberries. Stir. Add bacon mixture, stir again. Pour egg mixture overtop and stir to combine.
  • Cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours until moist and spongy, stirring half way through..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Filed Under: Meat, Sides Tagged With: bacon, celery, Christmas, cranberries, Easter, holiday, pears, pork, side dish, stuffing, Thanksgiving

Previous Post: « Pumpkin Carrot Cake Muffins
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Karen Elliott

    October 13, 2015 at 6:03 pm

    5 stars
    I made the pear and bacon stuffing for thanksgiving, have never before done the stuffing outside of the bird!! Absolutely fantastic!!!! Will do it again for sure

    Reply
    • Lori

      October 13, 2015 at 7:09 pm

      Thanks for coming back to tell me Karen. I really thought this recipe was a winner, great to hear that from you as well!

      Reply
  2. Dwain

    December 27, 2015 at 11:50 pm

    Made this for Christmas and was a little hesitant because stuffing is serious stuff around here. Everyone loved it and I even used GF breadcrumbs. Seriously the best and so easy in the slow cooker. This recipe will be part of the family for a long time to come. Thanks for sharing:)

    Reply
  3. Tara

    November 14, 2016 at 7:47 pm

    They don’t sell poultry seasoning where I live. What would be the equivalent spices?

    Reply
    • Lori

      November 14, 2016 at 11:29 pm

      2 teaspoons ground sage.
      1 1⁄2 teaspoons ground thyme.
      1 teaspoon ground marjoram.
      3⁄4 teaspoon ground rosemary.
      1⁄2 teaspoon nutmeg.
      1⁄2 teaspoon finely ground black pepper

      Reply
  4. Doreen Pendgracs

    November 22, 2016 at 11:54 pm

    This looks like a fantastic recipe! I will try it at Christmas. Thx and Happy Thanksgiving to you.

    Reply
    • Lori

      November 23, 2016 at 1:36 am

      Thanks Doreen, come back and tell me what you thought. Happy Thanksgiving!

      Reply

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