Italian Sausage & Cornbread Stuffing

Andrew was my biggest fan for my new stuffing recipe.  I hope y'all enjoy it as well.  If you don't look forward to turkey for Christmas (we usually have the turkey for Thanksgiving and ham for Christmas), it would be just as good with chicken.

Italian Sausage & Cornbread Stuffing

1 box Jiffy cornbread mix
8 oz. mild Italian sausage
1 1/2 sticks butter
1 cup chopped onions
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup sliced mushrooms (canned is fine)
1 tbsp. sage
1 pkg. seasoned croutons
1/2 cup chicken or turkey stock

Preheat over to 350 degrees.  Bake cornbread according to package directions.  In skillet cook sausage, skin removed, till slightly browned, stirring to crumble.  Transfer to large bowl.  Melt butter in skillet; saute onions, celery, and mushrooms until tender.  Stir in sage.  Mix in with sausage.  Add crumbled cornbread, along with croutons and stock, tossing lightly.  Pour mixture into 13x9x2-inch baking dish and cook at 350 degrees for approximately 30-40 minutes.

Greetings!

Just wishing you and yours a very Happy Thanksgiving!  I hope that everyone is enjoying the holiday with loved ones around them and plenty of good food!  Blessings!

Thanksgiving is around the Corner!

Ah,  my favorite time of the year!  The holidays are here!  Now, don't get me wrong:  I really wish the business sector would back off starting the commerical end of it so soon.  It really seems earlier this year with the "Black Friday" deals already starting up to snatch up the consumer's dollar.  I understand that a major toy chain announced that they will have 'Black Friday" deals on Thanksgiving Day!  That is ridiculous!  If the recession taught us one thing, it is what the important things are.  We were made to love.  Families are too important to waddle away from the Thanksgivng dinner table to snatch up the bargains that companies dangle in front of us.  Let's keep up the trend the recession started of "buying experiences."  Take the kids out to look at Christmas lights, splurge on the holiday dinners.  Check out some of the amusement attractions that are planning holiday themes.  Book a flight to see your mom over the holidays, or pack the minivan and make it a road trip!  I know my age may have a factor in this, but the things I remember from when I was younger are times when my family was doing something together, whether it was a trip in the stationwagon to Texas to visit grandparents or being a young adult just sitting at Mom & Dad's watching Dad flip the boneless pork chops on the grill and having a cold beer with him.  Those are memories I am thankful for this season, and that I hope to build on for my kids so they have their own as well.

Related articles

• Toys"R"Us Stores Nationwide to Open at 10pm on Thanksgiving Night to Welcome Black Friday Shoppers Earlier Than Ever Before with 200 Doorbusters and More Than $11,000 in Savings on Hot Toys (prnewswire.com)
• Shoppers preparing for attack on Black Friday (knoxnews.com)

Business Update

Today I got the DBA for Down Home Design & Glass.  We are still waiting for the sales tax permit to come in, but I'm inclined to think it will be any day now, as today I have received calls from sales reps claiming to be with Texas...blah blah blah, wanting me to sign up to accept credit cards!!  There were about four calls in the past hour and a half, and they all mentioned that I had recently "registered" my business with the state of Texas.  I am guessing they keep tabs on new businesses via the open records act.  Oh well!

When starting a business, the DBA registered with the county you are working in should probably be first.  I already had one for Down Home Designs and felt this would be a shoo-in.  Do your research regarding local and state sales tax for where you live as well.  And be sure to register with the Internal Revenue Service.  You will need to know if you will be opening as a Sole Proprietorship, Corporation, etc.  You also need to know what type of fiscal year you will be keeping.  The website for the I.R.S. and the Small Business Administration  can give you tons of information on business start up.

Related articles

• What Are the Legal Requirements for Starting a New Business? (thinkup.waldenu.edu)
• Tax Basics for Startups (entrepreneur.com)
• Business Structure Basics (entrepreneur.com)