Apple Stuffing

Ingredients

⅔ cup butter or margarine
¾ cup onion, chopped
¾ cup celery, chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
6 cups fresh breadcrumbs
3 cups apples, diced ¼- to ½-inch
¼ cup parsley, finely chopped
1½ tsp. salt (or to taste)
⅛ tsp. pepper
1 cup raisins

Method

Melt the butter in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, and garlic and sauté until soft but not brown.

Place the breadcrumbs in a large mixing bowl. Add the butter and vegetables and mix thoroughly. Stir in the apples, parsley, salt, pepper, and raisins. Stuff the bird loosely without packing. The stuffing, which is quite dry, absorbs juices from the apples and the bird as they cook.

Cortland apples hold their shape best, but other varieties, with the exception of tart green ones, are good as well.