This recipe for sourdough bread stuffing with tromboncino squash is comfort food that’s fancy enough for your next Thanksgiving get-together but simple enough to put together for a weeknight side dish.

Made with crusty, homemade sourdough bread and homegrown tromboncino squash (or sub with butternut squash or pumpkin!), this is one of my favorite recipes to use up leftover sourdough bread.

What Is in Sourdough Bread Stuffing with Squash and Herbs?

Stuffing, or dressing as some call it, is one of my favorite Thanksgiving side dishes. I love a simple, deeply flavored, tender, but not soggy bread stuffing.

For my take on this Thanksgiving classic, I’m using:

homemade sourdough bread,
homemade chicken stock
carrots, celery, and onions
homegrown tromboncino squash (similar in flavor to butternut squash)
fresh herbs
eggs
butter
herb salt

Because stuffing is such a simple dish, the quality of ingredients is really important to the overall flavor of the dish. There’s nowhere to hide if you’re using flavorless bread or watery chicken stock.

If you’re not able to make your own sourdough bread or chicken stock or grow your own fresh ingredients, get good quality store-bought bread and stock and the freshest veggies and herbs you can source. It really makes a difference.

I also like using my own homemade herb salt in this recipe!

Prepping Ingredients for Sourdough Bread Stuffing with Squash and Herbs

Prepping ingredients for this stuffing recipe is pretty straightforward and easy to do. Invite your kids to help you with the bread and make it a family event.

You will want to use stale, day-old bread if you can. Stale bread will be dry and can soak up the liquid from the stock and veggies more readily.

However if your bread is very fresh, prep your bread first and then toss it in a warm oven for 15 minutes or so to dry it out.

Slice your sourdough boule into thick slices. Rip or cut the slices into small pieces. I had my 8-year-old rip the bread and put it directly into the baking dish.

tearing sourdough bread into small pieces for a stuffing recipe

Chop up the aromatic vegetables: celery, carrots, and onions. Saute the vegetables on low heat with a tablespoon of butter and a sprinkle of salt. In French cuisine, this is called the mirepoix, and cooking these three veggies in butter, low and slow, builds really great flavor.

I used a bit more celery because I like the flavor in this dish.

Sauteeing the vegetables before combining them with the other ingredients in this dish will help bring out a deeper, richer flavor.

Meanwhile, cut up the squash into small cubes and add that to the sauteed vegetables.

Chop the herbs up finely and set aside. For this dish, I like to use a mix of parsley, sage, and thyme.

Lastly, measure out 2 cups of chicken stock and scramble 2 eggs.

Assemble the Sourdough Stuffing

Once the vegetables and bread are prepped, it’s time to combine the other ingredients.

Toss the bread with the sauteed vegetables, squash, and fresh herbs, reserving a handful of herbs to sprinkle on top for presentation.

pouring chicken stock on sourdough bread stuffing before baking

Pour the chicken stock and eggs over the bread mixture and lightly toss to combine, trying not to break the bread.

This part is optional, but I do like to drizzle the top of the stuffing with 2 tablespoons of melted better to crisp up the top a bit and add more richness to the dish.

Once the oven is up to temp, cover the stuffing with a sheet of foil and bake for 20 minutes. Then uncover the stuffing and bake for an additional 10 minutes. For a crisp top, don’t cover the stuffing at all.

When the stuffing is cooked through, it should be soft, but not soggy, with a browned top. Sprinkle the reserved herbs on top and serve immediately.

What to Serve with Sourdough Bread Stuffing and Tromboncino Squash

Obviously, you can serve this stuffing side dish with your Thanksgiving turkey. We love to make smoked turkey to go with this dish.

But as stuffing is a favorite of mine, I try to serve it on non-holiday nights as well!

This would be a great side dish with:

rotisserie chicken
barbecued chicken
grilled steak
baked halibut with lemon and butter
pot roast and gravy
baked ham

plate with sourdough bread stuffing and smoked turkey slices

This stuffing reheats well and can be made a day ahead and re-warmed in the oven with a foil cover.

What Is Tromboncino Squash?

Tromboncino squash is one of my favorite types of squash to grow. It is in the cucurbita moschata family, same as butternut squash.

I grow this squash in my garden as a zucchini substitute, so I can pick the squash small and young and use it as I would zucchini or summer squash. However, I can also allow the squash to mature like a butternut squash and store it in the same way.

I like that tromboncino squash has a unique shape, and it’s long neck makes it easy to peel and chop.

Substitute tromboncino squash with butternut squash or pumpkin for this recipe. Sweet potato would be acceptable as well.

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