Traditional Thanksgiving bread stuffing with sausage and sage gets a healthy, low carb makeover! Soul bread makes a great base for any stuffing or dressing you want. Grain-Free.
Whoa, whoa, whoa. Wait a gosh darned second here. It’s November first! How is that possible? Last time I checked, it was mid-September and I was just getting used to the idea that the kids were back in school and fall was on its way. Then I blinked and suddenly here we are. November. Which means it is high time for me to get my Thanksgiving butt in gear and start creating delicious low carb recipes for you and for me. So today, we are test-driving a brand new stuffing recipe based on the increasingly useful and adaptable Soul Bread.
Except for the low carb bread base, this is just a really traditional stuffing recipe with plenty of sausage and sage. I toyed with naming it Sausage & Sage Soul Bread Stuffing but I decided this was too much alliteration. It sounds like the start of some crazy tongue twister. Say “Sausage & Sage Soul Bread Stuffing” 10 times fast! I also toyed with the idea of other flavour variants but I decided I wanted to make the soul bread shine in a classic setting with traditional Thanksgiving seasonings. Like many people, I grew up with plenty of boxed stuffing mixes. And while they may not have been very good for us, they always tasted just like Thanksgiving should.
And Soul Bread is the perfect match for a traditional stuffing recipe, or any flavour of stuffing you feel like making. It’s the closest thing to white bread I’ve ever come across in the low carb world. You know I love my almond flour, but breads made with it can be heavy and filling, which doesn’t allow for as much stuffing consumption. Soul bread is lighter and has even fewer carbs, so you can pile the stuffing higher on your Thanksgiving plate.
I simply baked my Soul Bread Sesame Rolls in a loaf pan instead of in individual servings. Then I sliced it into 1/2 inch thick slices and let it sit in a warm oven for a few hours to dry it out further. I chopped the slices into 1/2 inch chunks, tossed it with cooked breakfast sausage, celery, a little onion, and some chopped sage. Some eggs, some cream, some salt and pepper, and there you have it. A classic low carb stuffing recipe that is sure to please even the pickiest of Thanksgiving guests.
- 1 recipe for Soul Bread Sesame Rolls - see instructions for preparation
- 1 lb bulk breakfast sausage
- 2 tbsp butter
- 2 stalks celery chopped
- 1/4 cup chopped onion
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh sage
- 3/4 cup chicken broth
- 3 large eggs
- 1/2 cup whipping cream
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For the soul bread, preheat the oven to 325F and grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
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Prepare the soul bread batter as directed and pour into prepared baking pan. Bake 35 to 40 minutes, until it is very puffed and browned and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean (it's okay if it's too dry upon cutting it...you want it dry anyway!). Remove and let cool in the pan 10 minutes, then flip out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
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Once the bread is cool, slice it into 1/2 inch thick slices. Lay the slices on a baking rack set over a large cookie sheet and set into a warm (200F) oven for about 2 hours, until quite dry. Chop into 1/2 inch chunks and transfer to a large bowl.
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Preheat the oven again to 325F and grease a 9x13 glass or ceramic baking dish.
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In a large skillet over medium heat, brown the sausage until mostly cooked through, breaking up any chunks with the back of a wooden spoon. Transfer the sausage to the bowl.
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Add 2 tbsp butter to the skillet and let melt. Add the celery, onion, salt, and pepper, and cook until vegetables are tender, about 4 minutes. Add the chopped sage and cook one minute more, then transfer the vegetables to the bowl. Pour the chicken broth over all of the ingredients in the bowl and toss to combine.
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In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs and cream. Pour over the stuffing ingredients and combine well. Spread the stuffing into the prepared baking dish and cover with foil. Bake 40 minutes, then remove foil and bake another 10 minutes, until top is browned and a bit crispy.
Serves 12 to 16. For 12 servings, each serving has 3.66g NET CARBS.
Food energy: 295kcal
Total fat: 23.8g
Calories from fat: 213
Carbohydrate: 4.24g
Total dietary fiber: 0.58g
Protein: 16.94g
Carrie says
Thanks, Carolyn! I was already starting to peruse stuffing recipes last night – this looks perfect!!
Lisa says
Where is the actual recipe for the soul bread? Am I missing it!!??
Carolyn says
You must be missing it because the recipe is right in the post…
Allie says
Where?
Carolyn says
Right above the comments.
Marie says
I also have this question. It just says “see instructions for preparation” and the instructions say “prepare the soul bread batter as directed”. Nothing seems to be a clickable link, though I’ll check again, and I assume I’ll be able to search it on your blog, but I think maybe you need to reconsider how this is reading/displaying if multiple people are having trouble finding the soul bread recipe. You say it’s right above the comments, but that’s the stuffing recipe, I don’t see the bread recipe.
Pam says
I will definitely try this with my TNT stuffing (also basically sage and sausage, onion, celery, butter, and broth as needed). I love the idea of the dried soul bread…as always, you have the best, awesome, recipes, Carolyn!
diane says
Looks so delicious!!!
I may have to try to make this.
Thanks for sharing!
By the way……love your photos!
diane @ @ thoughts&shots
Heidi says
Been trying to think of a way to adapt Mom’s traditional stuffing recipe & this might do the trick! Thanks!
Carol McRee says
Great idea, Carolyn! We go to a relative’s house for thanksgiving so I do have to be careful in choosing what to eat. Hubby and I also like to have our own thanksgiving dinner as we like to cook together. definitely will try using soul bread for the bread portion of a favorite stuffing recipe for our dinner.
Carol McRee says
Forgot to mention,I plan on using the stuffing made with this recipe as part of an appetizer we plan on taking to our relative’s thanksgiving dinner- bacon-wrapped stuffing bites that I saw last year on the Chew! Delicious and big hit at our Choir Christmas party. Thanks Carolyn for the wonderful ideas!
Carolyn says
That sounds delicious!
Carol McRee says
While I was adapting your recipe to be “stuffing muffins” (learned from RR), I did not follow your recipe except for making an baking the soul bread which came out great. Used chicken stock and 1 egg. Still was crumbly…. Well, lesson learned. When I try to adapt this as an appetizer, I will follow your recipe especially for the amount of liquid. It needs to be moist enough to hold together and instead of crumble. I think the additional eggs and cream are crucial to it holding together. The upside… our low carb meal just got lower without the stuffing. However three of your recipes will be on our table this evening! YUM! Carolyn, I give great thanks for your ideas and culinary abilities!
denise says
I normally use sourdough bread to make my stuffing and I don’t add sausage. The last time I made the soul bread it was lacking flavor (was that due to me not adding sweetener?) It was also crumbly. I read somewhere that you like to add gelatin and yeast (which I’m definitely doing this time around – don’t remember when you add those ingredients). How did you get the sourdough flavor and when how much do you add of that ingredient?
Thanks so much for your postings!
Carolyn says
I haven’t ever made Soul Bread with gelatin and yeast. Sorry, that wasn’t me!
Lynda says
Ok to add a few dried cranberries to this recipe??
Thank you for your recipes!
Carolyn says
Sure but do keep in mind that most dried cranberries are sweetened and fairly high carb.
Kelly H says
Is there ever going to be an option to print WITHOUT the picture? I print so many of your recipes, my printer and my wallet would be grateful 🙂
Carolyn says
I got heck from people for NOT having the photos so that’s the way I did it. I guess you could probably cut and paste?
Mary S says
Caroline, I made this stuffing and it was a revelation!!!!! My husband, who doesn’t eat low carb, tasted it and said there’s nothing wrong with using this as our preferred stuffing!
I made it as directed except left out the cream and egg mixture, and added Bell’s seasoning and dried oregano, sage,and thyme (about 1-1/2 Tbs each) in addition to fresh sage & thyme (1 good tsp each). Then I moistened it with turkey stock and baked it in a loaf pan, covered, for 30 min or so at 425 F.
Yum. The bread texture is reminiscent of corn bread (which I LOVE in stuffing)), and it holds together but doesn’t come out like pudding as I imagined it might if I had used the cream and eggs.
Thank you for this heavenly dish!!❤️
Carolyn says
So glad you liked it!
Shelley says
This was great, thank you so much. I made it per your recipe, just doubled it. Everyone loved it!
I will try Mary S’s version at Christmas time – and I may be brave and leave out the sausage, as my Mom and I always made it with just bread, butter, and broth (plus seasonings, of course). Stuffing is my favorite part of holiday meals, and having something this perfectly low-carb and perfectly wonderful for everyone to enjoy is just great.
Again, many thank for this – and for all your other wonderful recipes, as well as your positivity and encouragement. I hope your Thanksgiving was wonderful and relaxing.
Carolyn says
Glad you liked it!
Shelley says
PS Also meant to thank you for the simplified version of the Soul Bread recipe. Skipping the ‘sifting’ step was a big help, and the bread turned out fine, as always. By the way, when I make Soul Bread, I use Hoosier Hill Farm Whey Protein Powder Isolate, which I buy from Amazon because the Isopure has soy in it (just lecithin, if I remember correctly) – as being hypothyroid, I avoid soy whenever possible, and it works fine… Hoosier Hill is one of the brands that the Soul Bread creators mention as also being AOK.
Carolyn says
Good to know. I have some Hoosier Hill cream powder, maybe I should try the isolate too.
Jonathan says
Nice recipe except the egg still hadn’t cooked through after leaving it in the oven for twice as long as the recipe states. I would raise the temperature to 425, like the earlier commenter did, next time I make this.
DORIS SCHULER says
I just took the loaf of soul bread out of my oven. Since I’m not making my stuffing until Wednesday night, can I freeze the loaf whole? Thinking I’d defrost the night before, and dry a bit in my dehydrator. Thoughts please? And this looks like a life saver lol!
Carolyn says
That should work just fine.