New England Stuffing

We made this stuffing for the Town Party and it was very popular. It is more of a New Bedford style stuffing, since it uses a Portuguese sausage, linquica, instead of oysters.

3 cups bread cubes for stuffing, (1/2 herbed, 1/2 cornbread)
4 oz crumbled linguica or other sausage, cooked, skinned, crumbled
3/4 cup apple, diced (mixed varieties)
3/4 cup onion, chopped
3/4 cup walnuts, pinenuts, almonds, chopped
3/4 cup celery, chopped
2 tsp rosemary leaves, minced
3/4 cup beef stock, strong
1/3 cup butter

Combine bread, sausage, apple, onion, nuts, celery and toss well. Heat water and butter until butter melts. Toss with bread mixture. Spoon into a 2 quart casserole dish. Cover and bake at 350 F for about 45 minutes.  This recipe scales up very well; increase cooking time until internal temperature reaches 160 F.  It also freezes well.