I think the Pepperidge Farm bread would be fine, especially since it will be stale and mixed with other ingredients and then baked. One quick way to get the bread "day old" would be to toast it, but just enough to make it dry, being careful to not let it get to the point that it will crumble when you cut it. Oven toasting at a low temp and short perio of time might work better than a toaster. If you are going to make bread crumbs, rather than dice the bread, you don't have to be so careful about toasting it. Get the bread lightly bowned, cool completely, then process in food proceessor or blender.

I've never tried this, but the fridge makes bread stale (why you should never refigerate bread) separate the slices and refridgerate for a day (of course, now that I think about it - doesn't speed things up much)

In our area you can buy coarse bread crumbs. The look like croutons and are very dry. I have been using these for my stuffing for the convenience.

I make my dressings out of sourdough bread. It is a coarser texture than most other white breads and brings a nice tang to the dressing as well. I just slice it up the night before and let it sit out. It is properly 'stale' by the time you need to use it.

I do the same with cornbread if I use that........mix and bake the day before. When cool enough to handle, I break it into chunks and let it sit out overnight.

My mother baked all our bread. Before Thanksgiving, she baked extra and let it get stale to make the dressing. Sometimes she sliced the whole loaf or two, put it in her largest roasting pan, and put it in the oven for the pilot light to gently make it stale quicker. Delicious. Pepperidge Farm would be perfect.

Similar to what Sheila says, I learned from my mom, who used to take sliced loaves of bread and spread them on a cookie sheet or rimmed pan and dry it out in the oven at maybe 200F. You can cut it up first, which is easier than after it's dry and hard.

I don't bother to do that anymore, since I discovered Arrowhead Mills organic stuffing mix.

I do bake a batch of cornbread and break it up, then dry it in the oven.

Drying in the oven always works, but if you do plan ahead, you needn't bother. The point is so the bread doesn't turn into paste so easily (though some people like mushy fatty stuffing) and so it'll absorb all the good juices, whether from the bird or from stock added to a casserole.

You can buy bread for the purpose. I like a heartier bread than white 'artisan' but usually just keep the ends of what we've been eating in the freezer.

Just cut the bread into cubes the size you like, removing the crusts if you don't like them (though I think that's where the flavor is), and dump them in a big mixing bowl. Cover with something easily permeable, like cheescloth or a spatter screen, and let sit on the counter for a few days. A couple times a day, uncover and slide your hands to the bottom, lift and turn, so that it all gets a chance at the top with the air exposure to dry faster. If you have the room to set it out, you can do the same thing in a large sheet pan and skip turning the bread.

Carolb, I love the idea of something ready-made! But, is the Arrowhead different (other than it's organic) then a Pepperidge Farm stuffing mix?

Some years back I was nominated to bake the Thanksgiving lunch for the church - probably about 100 people. I panicked, as I had never made food except from scratch. Someone told me to use a package mix from Costco for the stuffing - I had never heard of that before, but was quite relieved I wouldn't be dicing so many loaves of bread, onions, celery,etc. It was really good. I think what makes the stuffing is the butter, the broth, the juices from the bird. and the spices. So if you don't scrimp on those ingredients you won't have a dry stuffing and it will be delicious regardless of what mix you use.

There is a difference between stale bread and dry bread. Stale bread is old....and frankly tastes stale to me, unless it's toasted....but a stuffing shouldn't be made with toast....at least I don't want it made with toast.
I use French bread....either home made or from the store....slice it the night before and lay the slices on a rack and in the morning it's fairly dry.....and I tear it apart and proceed with the sauteeing the celery and onions....adding the other stuff....maybe mushrooms....sage...lots of sage...parsley and thyme.....and salt and pepper.....and I always add an egg or 2....or 3!
I think the Pepperidge farms home style would be too dense....it's like a sandwich bread and made with milk and some fat.....where French bread is just flour, water, salt and yeast.

I use hot dog buns, split, left out overnight, then chopped in 1/4" pieces. The extra browning on the crust gives a really nice flavor IMO. I like a lot of dry sage in mine, onions and celery sauteed in butter and olive oil, salt and pepper, an egg and some milk.

To me, day old bread is just that - bread that has been taken out of its packaging, cut into cubes and left to sit in the open air for a day. I buy the cheapest sliced bread in the bread aisle for this.

I don't use stale bread.

I use "dry aged" bread. :-).

dcarch

It's always about leaving it out overnight for me. My family like cornbread stuffing, so I make the day before and leave it out overnight. For regular stuffing, it needs to be good bakery bread that's left out. I'm picky about stuffing. If it's not good bread and seasonings and texture, it's just empty calories to me.

Is it difference in flavor you're asking about, eld? I'm not sure, because I can't recall the last time I had Pepperidge Farm's stuffing mix.

I do know that the Arrowhead has no preservatives or dough conditioners, nor hydrogenated fats, etc. is seasoned, and contains cracked wheat and rye, has a lot of irregular chunks, not all uniform cubes. I consider it an organic analog to Pepperidge Farm, et. al.

I also crush and use it for seasoned breadcrumbs.

Taste in stuffing I’ve found can be a regional thing. We had a friend from the maritimes that we invited for Thanksgiving dinner. He wanted to bring their version of stuffing that he loved. OMG! You could strike a match on that stuff it was so dry. I like to use the dry bread crumbs I mentioned before and sauté the onion and celery. Then I add poultry seasoning, salt and pepper. Then I moisten it with turkey broth and an egg to a little drier than we like it as I do stuff the bird, contrary to popular ideals. I also like to,use a stuffing bag that you can just fill with the stuffing and then put it in the cavity. That way when the bird is done the stuffing comes out cleanly.

Stuffing bag sound brilliant! Louise, I'm not sure how regional it is vs. personal culture. Your stuffing sounds a lot like our family's Southern California stuffing, though we also add sliced mushrooms and bell peppers.

Thanks pillog. I tried to post a picture but again my 5 yr old granddaughter has better computer skills than me. But basically it’s a cheesecloth bag with a drawstring.

My mom used dried bread for stuffing...she dried and saved the heels & whatever bread that had gone a bit stale. Somewhere along the line she quit doing that & bought Pepperidge Farms stuffing mix. The PF mix is very good; in fact, I thought it tasted pretty much like her homemade stuffing. I don't recall her ever buying bread specifically to make stuffing.

I use a stuffing bag, too. Actually, not a bag but a square of several layers of cheesecloth stuffed into the bird cavity. Make sure the square is large enough for the corners to fall outside of the bird. Then add the stuffing. It's easy to pull out once the bird is done. And, the bonus for me is that there are no bits of stuffing left inside the bird to cloud up the broth when I cook down the carcass.

Commercial breads do have ingredients to lengthen the shelf life. I would find a good homemade/bakery boule. Or put it on your list to learn how to make it. One of the easiest breads. Good fresh day made. Good day two for toast or grilled cheese. Day three, good for stuffing or frozen for croutons/breadcrumbs/stuffing. A good sturdy bread that is perfect for many things.

Most of my thanksgiving prep is done by the end of October first week of November. Half a boule, half a cornbread, maybe half a baguette, a brioche roll or two. Chicken stock, a leek top veg stock. All made/saved/frozen from meals made those few previous weeks.

In the late 80's when we started hosting Thanksgiving, I combined three classic/basic recipes from FoodAndWine. The basic American, a cornbread, and a wild rice/mushroom. The ingredients work well together. I can easily make a vegetarian or a gluten-free or vegan. Most of the veg prep can be divided easy enough. Chicken stock and lamb sausage for most of us. Veg stock for the vegetarians. The big initial sweating of the celery, etc can be divided into three bowls so vegan and gluten-free can be made for separate casseroles.

I also do the cheesecloth for the bird I learned here a few years ago. Just a few cups for those that insist.

Made a boule a couple days ago and another today. The Forkish pinch and fold method so no kneading at all. 1/3rd of this is in the freezer for fish chowder croutons.

Having said all that, yawn, I would just purchase the pre-dried 'kit' bag rather than go through any long air dried method for commercial bread. Or into a low oven for an hour or two, then freeze it ahead of time.