Skip to Content
Recipes

Focaccia Stuffing with Sausage and Fennel

A Thanksgiving recipe for focaccia stuffing with sausage and fennel will add a flavorful note to your turkey-led spread.

focaccia stuffing

Focaccia stuffing with sausage and fennel.

Focaccia stuffing adds an Italian flourish to your Thanksgiving table, especially with addition of sausage and fennel. The combination of textures and flavors complements the turkey and fixins,

Focaccia Stuffing with Sausage and Fennel

Focaccia Stuffing with Sausage and Fennel

Recipe by Andrew Cotto
0.0 from 0 votes
Servings

8

servings
Prep time

20

minutes
Cooking time

50

minutes

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup 1/4 extra virgin olive oil

  • 2 lb 2 sweet sausage, removed from casing

  • 1 small 1 onion, diced

  • 1 1 fennel bulb, separated from stalks, cored, and julienned as this as possible (save and chop fronds from the stalks)

  • 2 cups 2 chicken stock

  • 1 cup 1 chopped sage

  • 1 large 1 loaf pan of plain focaccia, cut into 1" pieces and lightly toasted

  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions

  • Heat oven to 375°F.
  • Add olive oil to a saute pan over medium heat.
  • Add sausage, stirring often, breaking into pieces, until the meat is browned.
  • Remove sausage, with a slotted spoon, to a large mixing bowl and set aside.
  • Saute fennel and onion in pan juices until soft (5–7 minutes).
  • Transfer with a slotted spoon to bowl with sausage.
  • Add sage, bread, salt, and pepper to bowl with saute pan; toss to combine with the drippings.
  • Season to taste with salt and pepper.
  • Add to bowl and mix evenly with the other ingredients.
  • Spread evenly in a large baking dish coated with a sheen of olive oil.
  • Dab with stock until slightly moist (save the remaining stock).
  • Bake until golden brown and bread is slightly crisp on top, 30–35 minutes (dab with remaining stock as needed to keep moist).
  • Garnish with chopped fennel fronds.

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @appetitomagazine on Instagram and hashtag it with #italianfoodanddrink

Like this recipe?

Follow @Appetitomagazine on Pinterest

Follow us on Facebook!

Follow us on Facebook

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Appetito

I ♥️ Portland, Says Chef Gabriel Pascuzzi — and He’s Proving It

Over multi-course dinners and seasonal menus, Pascuzzi aims to remind diners why Portland is worth the trip.

Bread and Hunger: Italy’s Measure of Good and Bad

From Buono come il pane to Brutto come la fame, two familiar sayings reveal how Italian culture measures good and bad at the table—through sustenance and deprivation.

March 2, 2026

Sunday Shop: An Ode to the Slip Skirt 

Morgan Hines seeks out the best in not only food and drink but style, housewares, and more. Welcome to Appetito’s Sunday Shop!

March 1, 2026

How Italian Professor Ilaria Serra Eats in America

Professor Ilaria Serra, a native of Venice, shares her experiences with Italian food in her adopted hometown of Boca Raton, Florida.

February 27, 2026

A Late Winter Dessert Sip: The Hazelnut Espresso Martini

This cozy cocktail blends espresso and toasted hazelnut with honeyed vanilla vodka for a rich finish to the colder months.

February 26, 2026

Spring Filini with Wild Garlic Pesto and Samphire

Pasta & Magic author Mark Gowen shares a seasonal pesto that comes together with instinct and careful tasting.

February 26, 2026
See all posts