Apple Cranberry Leek Holiday Stuffing Recipe

This Apple Cranberry Leek Holiday Stuffing is an incredible combination of sweet and savory and is full of fresh herbs and other tasty seasonings. It’s always a star on a Thanksgiving table.

Thanksgiving is My Favorite Time of Year

Thanksgiving is one of my most favorite holidays and it kicks off the whole end-of-year holiday season. What I love about this holiday is that the main focus is getting your loved ones together, spending the day with each other and sharing a fabulous holiday meal.

And speaking about a fabulous holiday meal, I love Thanksgiving dinner! Literally my most favorite dinner of the year.

Thanksgiving Stuffing is the Best!

And my most favorite side dish (or really any part of the meal), is homemade stuffing. This Apple Cranberry Leek Stuffing is the perfect balance of sweet and savory with apples, dried cranberries and lots of fresh herbs and leeks.

And It’s Great the Next Day

This is a side dish the entire family enjoys. And if you are lucky enough to have leftover stuffing, it makes a great hash the next day.

Easy to Make. Better to Eat!

Over medium heat, simply melt butter in a small or medium skillet, put in some leftover stuffing, turkey and mashed potatoes. When everything has turned golden brown you can also put a little gravy in there at the last minute.

So good!

Tips and Tricks for Making the Perfect Apple Cranberry Leek Holiday Stuffing Recipe

• Make sure to use plain croutons for this recipe. There are already a lot of seasonings and fresh herbs that go into this dish, so seasoned croutons are not necessary and may actually overpower the stuffing.
• Granny Smith apples are my preferred apple for this dish. They have a firm texture that holds up well to baking as well as a slightly tart flavor which marries well with the savory seasonings.
• Soaking the dried cranberries is an important step, don’t skip it. It makes them nice and tender and works well with the rest of the ingredients.
• If you can’t find leeks, you can substitute a medium red onion.
• If you can’t find or don’t want to use Granny Smith apples, Honeycrisp apples are a good substitution.
• This apple cranberry leek stuffing recipe can easily be doubled. You’ll need to divide the stuffing mixture into two 9×13 baking dishes.
• This can be assembled a day or two ahead of time and then refrigerated. When you’re ready to bake it, take it out of the refrigerator while the oven preheats. It may take an extra 5-10 minutes to heat through

Ingredients Needed for Apple Cranberry Leek Holiday Stuffing

Full instructions can be found below in the recipe card

• Butter
• Leeks
• Granny Smith apples
• Celery
• Poultry seasoning
• Dried cranberries
• Fresh sage
• Fresh rosemary
• Plain croutons
• Fresh parsley
• Chicken stock
• Salt
• Black pepper

How to Make This Apple Cranberry Leek Holiday Stuffing Recipe

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Soak dried cranberries in boiling water for 15 minutes and drain.
• Prep your vegetables. Prepare leeks first by slicing lengthwise and then crossways.
• To clean the leeks, fill a large bowl with water, add the sliced leeks, swish around and then let sit to allow any dirt to sink to the bottom of the bowl.
• Remove leeks from the large bowl and dry with paper towels.
• Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat.
• When pan is hot, add leeks, apples, celery and poultry seasoning.
• Saute for about 8 minutes, until leeks are soft.
• Stir in the cranberries, sage and rosemary.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine veggie mixture and the croutons along with the parsley.
• Then add the chicken stock a little at a time until the stuffing is very moist, but not mushy. Season with salt and black pepper.
• At this point the stuffing mixture can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. Just cover the large mixing bowl with aluminum foil.
• If ready to bake, place in a 9×13 pan that’s been coated with cooking spray.
• Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 30 minutes until top is crispy and stuffing is heated through. 
• Serve immediately.

More Thanksgiving Side Dishes to Love

• Maple Brown Butter Roasted Sweet Potatoes
• Fresh Green Beans with Shallot Butter Sauce
• Sourdough Sausage Stuffing
• Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Spicy Mustard Vinaigrette
• Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Shallots and Mushrooms
• Amish Broccoli Salad
• Cranberry Fluff
• Perfect Dinner Rolls
• Drunken Cranberry Sauce
• Pumpkin Pie Spice Butter

Continue to Content

Yield: 8 servings

Apple Cranberry Leek Holiday Stuffing Recipe

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This Apple Cranberry Leek Holiday Stuffing is an incredible combination of sweet and savory and is full of fresh herbs and other tasty seasonings. It’s always a star on a Thanksgiving table.

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 1 hour

Ingredients

• 4 tbsp butter
• 2 leeks, sliced in half lengthwise and then thinly slice crosswise (using the white and pale green parts of the leek)
• 2 granny smith apples, cored and chopped
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 tbsp poultry seasoning
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1 tbsp fresh sage, chopped
• 2 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped
• 6 cups plain croutons
• 1/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped
• 2 to 3 cups chicken stock
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp black pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Soak dried cranberries in boiling water for 15 minutes and drain.
3. Prep your vegetables. Prepare leeks first by slicing lengthwise and then crossways.
4. To clean the leeks, fill a large bowl with water, add the sliced leeks, swish around and then let sit to allow any dirt to sink to the bottom of the bowl.
5. Remove leeks from the large bowl and dry with paper towels.
6. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat.
7. When pan is hot, add leeks, apples, celery and poultry seasoning.
8. Saute for about 8 minutes, until leeks are soft.
9. Stir in the cranberries, sage and rosemary.
10. In a large mixing bowl, combine veggie mixture and the croutons along with the parsley.
11. Then add the chicken stock a little at a time until the stuffing is very moist, but not mushy.
12. Season with salt and black pepper.
13. At this point the stuffing mixture can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. Just cover the large mixing bowl with aluminum foil.
14. If ready to bake, place in a 9×13 pan that’s been coated with cooking spray.
15. Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 30 minutes until top is crispy and stuffing is heated through. (See notes)
16. Serve immediately.

Notes

This can be assembled a day or two ahead of time and then refrigerated. When you're ready to bake it, take it out of the refrigerator while the oven preheats. It may take an extra 5-10 minutes to heat through.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

8

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 318Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 23mgSodium: 1225mgCarbohydrates: 41gFiber: 4gSugar: 15gProtein: 9g