As promised in my last post, we’re taking Dana Jacobi’s Gluten-Free Cornbread recipe and using it to make her gluten-free holiday dressing.

“This dressing reheats so well, and its robust Southwestern flavor mellows so nicely, that I often make it a day ahead,” says Jacobi, author of The Essential Best Foods Cookbook: 225 Irresistible Recipes Featuring the Healthiest and Most Delicious Foods and a contributor to the New American Plate Cookbook: Recipes for a Healthy Weight and a Healthy Life. “And no one will guess it has a gluten-free secret.”

Southwestern Gluten-Free Cornbread Dressing 

Makes 12 servings

• Gluten-free cornbread recipe
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 cup finely chopped celery
• 1 cup finely chopped onion
• 1 cup finely chopped poblano pepper
• 1 cup chopped scallions, green and white parts
• 1 cup peeled and chopped apple (Honey Crisp, Ginger Gold or Golden Delicious)
• 2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 2 to 3 cups gluten-free turkey or chicken broth, heated
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled

Cornbread Prep

1. Make gluten-free cornbread, per recipe, and let it cool.
2. Position racks in upper and lower third of oven. Preheat to 250°F.
3. With serrated knife, cut cooled cornbread into 1/2-inch cubes. There will be about 10 cups of cubed cornbread.
4. Spread cubed bread in even layer over two light-colored baking sheets. Bake, stirring every 10 minutes, until cubes are mostly dry, firm and deep gold in color, about 40 to 50 minutes.
5. Cool toasted cornbread on baking sheets. There will now be about 8½ cups of toasted cubed cornbread, which can be stored in a covered bowl on the counter for 24 hours.

For the Dressing

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat 8-inch square baking dish with cooking spray, and set aside.
2. Place toasted cornbread in large mixing bowl.
3. In large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add celery, onion and poblano pepper. Cook, stirring often, until onion is soft, about 8 minutes.
4. Add scallions and apple, and cook until softened, about 4 minutes. Add contents of pan to cornbread.
5. Add Cajun seasoning and eggs. With rubber spatula or your hands, mix until dressing is well combined.
6. Add 2 cups of hot broth and mix. Add more broth, if needed, until dressing is evenly moistened, but not mushy.
7. Turn into prepared baking dish. Dot top of dressing with 2 tablespoons butter, cut into thin chips. Cover baking dish with foil.
8. Bake dressing, covered, until hot in center of pan (160 °F on instant-read thermometer). Let dressing sit for 20 minutes to settle before serving.

Per serving: 300 calories, 13 g total fat (5 saturated fat), 40 g carbohydrate, 10 g protein, 4 g dietary fiber, 540 mg sodium.

Recipe and photo courtesy of the American Institute for Cancer Research

Approximately 3.5% of the American population suffers from celiac disease, an autoimmune disorder that affects the small intestine.

Celiac patients are unable to digest gluten, a protein found in wheat, spelt, rye, barley and oats.

Visit your local natural and organic food store, and you’re likely to find a section or entire aisle devoted to gluten-free foods.  Some of the available products may surprise you, as gluten can be “an invisible ingredient” in foods like chicken broth, mayonnaise and pie fillings, says Dana Jacobi, author of The Essential Best Foods Cookbook: 225 Irresistible Recipes Featuring the Healthiest and Most Delicious Foods and a contributor to the New American Plate Cookbook: Recipes for a Healthy Weight and a Healthy Life.

With clever substitutions, and without sacrificing taste, celiac sufferers can create dishes that everyone will enjoy. Jacobi’s cornbread recipe, for example, starts with a gluten-free mix.

In my next post, we’ll use this cornbread recipe to make a gluten-free holiday stuffing. Tune in tomorrow!

Gluten-Free Cornbread

• Nonstick cooking spray
• 2 large eggs
• 1 large egg white
• 1 bag (20 oz.) gluten-free cornbread mix (such as Bob’s Red Mill)
• 1/3 cup (5-1/3 tablespoons) melted unsalted butter
• 1¾ cups fat-free or low-fat buttermilk

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Coat a 9-inch square, light-colored baking pan with cooking spray.
2. In a small mixing bowl, beat together the eggs and egg white. In a large mixing bowl, combine cornbread mix, eggs, butter and buttermilk, using a hand mixer on medium speed. When the batter is blended, increase speed to high, and beat the batter for 30 seconds. Transfer it to prepared pan.
3. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the cornbread is browned around the edges. Turn out onto a wire rack and cool.

Recipe courtesy of the American Institute for Cancer Research. Photo: