After my grandmother passed away, my mom made a surprising discovery. She found an aged, yellowed bread bag folded neatly into a square tucked in Gramma's recipe box. and a little piece of our family history unfolded in her hands. It was a 'Tip Top' bread bag, worn by time, with a recipe for stuffing printed on the back.
In the kitchen of my childhood, Gramma was nothing short of a culinary magician. To me, as a child, she simply was the best cook in the world. It seemed she created wonders out of thin air. Seeing that bread bag, I understood that even Gramma had her starting point. And that's when it dawned on me: it wasn't just her skill, but the love she poured into that stuffing, which made it so extraordinary.
I've since framed that bread bag and bring it out to my kitchen every year during Thanksgiving time, both as a decoration and an inspiration, a tangible reminder of the love and legacy Gramma left behind.
This is the recipe that my grandmother found on the back of a bread bag, made her own and perfected long before I was born. It truly is the perfect recipe. It isn't fancy or complicated. Its simplicity is its strength, and the deliciousness lies in the care with which it's prepared. The ingredients, though humble, come together in a way that's nothing short of magical – a testament to the recipes that stand the test of time and the hands that have lovingly prepared them through the years.
Wonder Bread stepped in for "Tip Top" at some point, probably before I was born, and that is what we have used as long as I can remember. The ingredients and instructions as written here are for a single batch using one loaf of bread. All the pictures, however, are of the preparation of a double batch. We always make 2, and sometimes 3 or 4 batches at a time depending on how big of a crowd is being fed, and because we all love it so much and would be devastated if it ran out. Leftovers are a must, too
Ingredients
- 1 loaf Wonder bread (20 oz), toasted then cubed
- 1 cup (2 sticks or 8 ounces) unsalted butter
- 2 cups onions, chopped
- 2 cups celery, chopped
- 1/4 c parsley, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon rubbed sage
- 1-2 teaspoons salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 2 cups water or broth
Grease a 9 x 13 inch baking dish and preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Melt butter over medium heat and add chopped onions and celery. Cook for a few minutes until just beginning to soften, then add water. Bring back to a simmer and cook for an additional 15-20 minutes until they are translucent and very tender. Turn off the heat and let the mixture cool. You want to make sure the vegetable mixture is cool enough to mix with your hands, also, we are adding eggs in the next step and don't want the heat of the vegetables to cause them to cook at this point.
Toasting the bread was always the job of the youngest member of the team. You can also spread them on a cookie sheet and toast them under the broiler. Cut all the toast into cubes and pile them into a large mixing bowl. Add parsley, sage, salt and pepper. Pour in cooled vegetable mixture and crack in 2 eggs. Get in there with your hands and mix well. I cannot endorse taste-testing at this point because there are raw eggs. Just know that it tastes really good at this point, and usually everyone in the kitchen will take a pinch or a fistful to make sure it tastes as good as we remember. It always does.
Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes, remove foil and bake for an additional 20-30 minutes or until brown and set.
Serve it with turkey and a lot of love. Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
I love that you have the Tip Top bread bag! ❤️ That’s what we always used — that or Bunny or Sunbeam. My parents sold those specific brands at their store.