Dried Bread (multi-grain mixed with a soft wheat)
½ lb. Butter
½ Can Chicken Broth
1 Large Onion
Celery
Giblets
Pistachio Nuts
Shiitake MushroomsParsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme
Cut up the bread in cubes and place into a large pot. Our Shitake mushrooms come dehydrated, so it is best to warm up the chicken broth and butter and rehydrate the mushrooms for half an hour. You can also add some Shiitake sauce (found in Chinese food stores or some of the food co-ops) and a pinch of salt and pepper. Cut up the rehydrated mushrooms and add them with the butter/broth concoction to the bread crumbs and mix well.
Chop up the onion and add it to the mixture, then cut up the giblets. I prefer to blend them in the food processor (it should look like blackberry yogurt). Then add that to the mixture.
If you have fresh spices, you should have a good handful of parsley and lots of sage. Add a few pinches of rosemary, and slightly more thyme and blend them together. If you don't have fresh spices, go get them. (Or use a little more of the dried.) You will know if the mixture of fresh spices is right when the wonderful aroma has a distinct hint of the stuffing your grandmother served you as a child.
Mix in the spices and stir well. Finally mix in the celery and pistachio nuts, if there are any left after pealing them. By the way, the pistachio nuts are the secret ingredient. They add a delicate sweetness to the flavor, so hand pick the good nuts and avoid the ones that look bitter.
Stuff the chicken and bake the leftover stuffing in a pan next to the chicken remembering to take it out early. You'll know when it's done.
Remove the stuffing right away when the chicken is done, and mix it with the leftover you just baked and put it back in the oven for another fifteen minutes covered.
