Stuck on side dish duty this Thanksgiving, with your mother-in-law eyeballing every plate that hits the table? We got you. We were tired of the same old, same old casserole dish of stuffing, so we decided to stuff some apples with our favorite festive side and show off a little. Nobody will guess how little work went into these sausage-stuffed apples; Your secret’s safe with us.
These festive lil apples look like you spent all day channeling your inner Martha, but it’s really boxed stuffing mix with a couple of upgrades. We use sausage fat as a swap for the butter so the stuffing soaks up all that pork flavor. And a quick drizzle of honey at the end to make the flavor really pop. Ten out of ten on presentation, about 25 minutes of hands-on work.
🔪 Ingredients for Sausage Stuffed Apples
If you want the apples chopped right into a pan of stuffing, that’s our apple sausage stuffing. This recipe flips it: the apple is the vessel, the stuffing starts from a boxed herb mix, and every guest gets their own.
- Large, firm apples: Pink Lady or Honeycrisp. Both hold their shape in the oven, and you want apples big enough to leave room for a real scoop of stuffing. Pick ones that sit flat and upright.
- Sweet Italian pork sausage: bulk sausage crumbles easiest. The fat it renders becomes the cooking fat for the vegetables and the richness in the stuffing, so don’t reach for a lean version.
- Yellow onion and celery: the classic stuffing base, softened in the sausage fat so they carry pork flavor into every bite.
- Garlic and black pepper
- Herb seasoned stuffing mix: one 6-ounce box, like Kinder’s, Pepperidge Farm or Stove Top. The seasoning is already in the mix, which is why there is no extra salt or herb list here.
- Chicken broth
- Honey and flaky sea salt: the finish, added after baking. Sweet, salty and savory all land in the same bite.
Equipment
- Melon baller or teaspoon: scoops the core and carves the cavity while leaving even half-inch walls and bottoms.
- Large skillet: browns the sausage, softens the vegetables and builds the stuffing all in one pan.
- 9-by-13-inch baking dish: holds the apples upright. Grab a second dish if your apples are big.
- Paring knife: your doneness test. It should slide into the apple flesh with little resistance.
📝 How to Make Sausage Stuffed Apples
- Heat the oven to 375°F.
- Hollow the apples. Slice about ½ inch off the top of each apple. Use a melon baller or teaspoon to remove the core and scoop out enough flesh to make a cavity, leaving walls and a bottom about ½ inch thick all the way around.
- Set up the dish. Stand the hollowed apples upright in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish, using a second dish if they don’t all fit.
- Brown the sausage. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and break it into small crumbles with a wooden spoon. Cook 6 to 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until no pink remains and the edges are deeply browned. Move the sausage to a plate and leave about 2 tablespoons of rendered fat in the skillet, spooning off only the excess.
- Soften the vegetables. Drop the heat to medium. Add the onion and celery and cook in the sausage fat for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened.
- Bloom the garlic. Stir in the garlic and black pepper and cook for 30 seconds, stirring constantly, until the garlic smells fragrant.
- Build the stuffing. Return the sausage to the skillet. Add the whole box of dry stuffing mix and 1¼ cups of the chicken broth. Stir until the bread absorbs the liquid and starts to soften, then pull the skillet off the heat. The stuffing should be moist and hydrated throughout, not mushy.
- Stuff the apples. Spoon the sausage stuffing into each cavity and mound it slightly above the opening. Press gently so it stays put, without packing it tight. Depending on the size of your apples, you may have stuffing left over.
- Add the pan broth. Pour the remaining ½ cup chicken broth into the bottom of the baking dish around the apples.
- Bake uncovered for 35 to 40 minutes, starting to check at 30 minutes. They’re done when a paring knife slides into the apple flesh easily, the apples still hold their shape, and the exposed stuffing has golden brown edges.
- Rest and plate. Let the apples rest for 5 minutes, then move them to a platter or individual plates.
- Finish warm. Drizzle each apple with honey, sprinkle with flaky sea salt, and serve right away.
🔄 Substitutions
- Braeburn for Pink Lady or Honeycrisp: another apple that holds its shape through the bake.
- Granny Smith for Pink Lady or Honeycrisp: a sharper tart contrast against the savory stuffing and the honey. Whatever you choose, stick with large, firm apples. Soft, mealy apples slump under the weight of the filling.
- Pork breakfast sausage for sweet Italian sausage: the flavor lands closer to a traditional breakfast stuffing.
- Hot Italian sausage for sweet Italian sausage: a sweet and spicy contrast, and the heat plays especially well with the honey finish.
💡 Meat Nerd Tips
- Keep two tablespoons of fat. Boxed stuffing mixes usually call for butter for richness. The rendered sausage fat does the same job and brings more savory flavor, so pour off only what sits above that two-tablespoon mark.
- Don’t drown the stuffing. Start with the 1¼ cups of broth and let the stuffing rest 5 minutes. It keeps absorbing moisture and fat from the sausage and vegetables. Add another tablespoon or two of broth only if you still find dry, crunchy pieces.
- Even walls set the bake time. The 35 to 40 minute window assumes evenly hollowed walls. Thick walls or extra-large apples may need another 5 to 10 minutes, so let the paring knife decide: tender flesh, apple still standing.
- Leave the skins on. The peel is what holds the apple together. Peeled apples are far more likely to collapse under the sausage stuffing.
🍽️ What to Serve with Sausage Stuffed Apples
- A whole roast turkey: each apple doubles as the stuffing and the fruit side on the Thanksgiving plate. Start with our guide to how to cook a turkey in the oven.
- Smoked turkey breast: a smaller-crowd centerpiece that leaves the oven free for the apples. Try this smoked turkey breast.
- Roast pork loin: pork and apples are a classic match, and this side sits right beside a sliced pork loin roast.
- Giblet gravy: for the people at your table who want gravy on their stuffing, spoon a little of our giblet gravy over the top before the honey.
- The rest of the holiday table: round out the spread with these Thanksgiving side dishes.
🧊 Leftovers and Storage
- Refrigerate within 2 hours. Let the apples cool, then move them to an airtight container.
- Keeps up to 3 days in the fridge.
- Reheat in the oven. Set the apples in a baking dish with a splash of chicken broth, cover loosely with foil and warm at 325°F for about 10 to 15 minutes.
- Save the honey and flaky salt for after reheating, the same way you finished them the first time.
This is about to be your new favorite holiday side dish: Crispy-edged Italian sausage stuffing baked inside tender, sweet-tart apples, then finished with warm honey and flaky salt. Every guest gets their own, and nobody has to fight over the corner piece.
Prevent your screen from going to sleep
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Melon baller or teaspoon
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9×13-inch baking dish
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Paring knife
Prep the Apples
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Preheat the oven to 375°F. Cut about ½ inch off the top of each apple. Use a melon baller or teaspoon to remove the core and scoop out a cavity, leaving walls and bottoms about ½ inch thick. Stand the apples upright in a 9×13-inch baking dish, using a second dish if needed.
Brown the Sausage
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Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and break it into small crumbles. Cook 6 to 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until fully cooked with deeply browned edges. Transfer to a plate, leaving about 2 tablespoons of rendered fat in the skillet. Spoon off only the excess.
Cook the Vegetables
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Reduce the heat to medium. Add the onion and celery and cook in the sausage fat 3 to 4 minutes, until softened. Stir in the garlic and pepper and cook 30 seconds, until fragrant.
Build the Stuffing
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Return the sausage to the skillet. Add the whole box of stuffing mix and 1¼ cups of the broth. Stir until the stuffing absorbs the liquid and begins to soften, then remove from the heat. It should be moist throughout without turning mushy.
Stuff the Apples
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Spoon the stuffing into the apples, mounding it slightly above the openings. Press gently so it stays in place, without packing it tight. Pour the remaining ½ cup broth into the dish around the apples.
Bake
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Bake uncovered 35 to 40 minutes, checking at 30, until a paring knife slides into the apple flesh easily, the apples still hold their shape and the stuffing has golden brown edges.
Finish and Serve
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Rest 5 minutes, then transfer to a platter. Drizzle with honey, sprinkle with flaky sea salt and serve warm.
- Servings follow the apple count: one apple per person. Use 6 very large apples or 8 medium-large ones. Depending on apple size, you may have extra stuffing.
- Broth: after the stuffing rests 5 minutes, add another 1 to 2 tablespoons only if dry, crunchy pieces remain. The stuffing keeps absorbing moisture and fat from the sausage and vegetables.
- Fat: the 2 tablespoons of rendered sausage fat stand in for the butter that boxed stuffing mixes usually call for.
- Bake time: thick walls or extra-large apples may need another 5 to 10 minutes. Test with a paring knife.
- Leave the skins on. They help the apples hold their shape under the stuffing.
- Swaps: Braeburn or Granny Smith apples for Pink Lady or Honeycrisp. Pork breakfast sausage or hot Italian sausage for sweet Italian.
- Storage: cool, then refrigerate in an airtight container within 2 hours, up to 3 days. Reheat in a baking dish with a little chicken broth, covered loosely with foil, at 325°F for 10 to 15 minutes. Add honey and flaky salt after reheating.
Calories: 1677kcal | Carbohydrates: 164g | Protein: 58g | Fat: 93g | Saturated Fat: 30g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 13g | Monounsaturated Fat: 40g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 253mg | Sodium: 3746mg | Potassium: 2324mg | Fiber: 28g | Sugar: 119g | Vitamin A: 1009IU | Vitamin C: 61mg | Calcium: 159mg | Iron: 6mg
Quick Summary
Sausage stuffed apples are hollowed Pink Lady or Honeycrisp apples filled with sweet Italian sausage stuffing built from a boxed herb mix, baked uncovered at 375°F for 35 to 40 minutes, then finished with honey and flaky salt. Cook the onion and celery in about two tablespoons of rendered sausage fat in place of butter, and keep the stuffing moist but not mushy. Pull them when a paring knife slides in easily and the apples still hold their shape.
❓ FAQs
Large, firm apples that hold their shape in the oven: Pink Lady, Honeycrisp or Braeburn. Granny Smith works too if you want a sharper tart contrast against the savory stuffing.
No. The skins help the apples hold their shape during roasting. Without them, the apple flesh is much more likely to collapse under the weight of the sausage stuffing.
Start checking at 30 minutes. They’re ready when a paring knife slides into the apple flesh with little resistance, the apples still stand on their own, and the exposed stuffing has golden brown edges, usually 35 to 40 minutes at 375°F.
Honey can darken or scorch during uncovered roasting. Drizzling it over the warm apples after baking keeps its flavor clean and gives every apple a glossy, sweet finish against the flaky salt.