Cornbread Dressing

My husband and his friends have this tradition which has been running close on to fifteen years. It's called the Martha Stewart Christmas Dinner. Basically the idea is that everyone is supposed to dress in their cheesiest Christmas-y outfits, pull out the most scrumptious holiday food recipes they have and for one night gorge themselves on Christmas cheer.
This is the night where the wives all try to outdo themselves in what they bring. Until we moved to China, this cornbread stuffing/dressing was my signature dish.
It is beyond delicious! It is so light and fluffy that it tastes more like a souffle than a dressing. The cornbread is the secret. If gives a slightly sweet, but not too sweet, taste to the stuffing. My husband actually dislikes dressing and this is the only stuffing recipe he will eat. He loves it! And it is very appealing to the eye as well as the taste buds. I've seen some pretty gray looking dressings before. This looks gorgeous!

Ingredients:
4 cups prepared corn bread, torn into pieces, and staled
6 cups French bread, cubed and staled
3 cups chicken broth
2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup unsalted butter
2 cups celery,
2 cups onion,
3 tbsp. minced fresh sage (if you can't find fresh sage- or are too lazy to go to City Shop to buy it like I was- use 1 tbsp dried sage)
3 eggs, beaten
1⁄2 cup minced fresh parsley
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375°coat a 3-quart baking dish with nonstick spray.

Cut up french bread/baguette and corn bread into cubes and stale.


*Stale the bread the night before by placing them in a 200°oven for an hour. Then turn the oven off and allow the bread to cool inside for at least another hour before proceeding.

Combine both types of bread.

Add milk,

broth,

Set aside.

Saute celery and onion in butter in a skillet over medium-high heat, 3 minutes.

Add sage and cook for 1 minute.

Let stand about 3 minutes.  Add celery mixture,

parsley,

beaten eggs and salt (about 1/2 tsp)

Mix well, then spoon dressing into the prepared baking dish. (This makes a ton- I usually split it into two dishes) Bake 45 - 60 minutes, or until lightly browned.