2 ½ - 3 cups chopped onions. About 1 pound 

3 cups chopped celery, about 1 pound

1 pound butter

1 gallon water or chicken stock, more or less depending on dryness of the bread.  Stock will give better flavor to the stuffing.  

1 tablespoon salt, or to taste.  

1 tablespoon ground black pepper, or to taste

2 tablespoons ground poultry seasoning  OR  equal amount dried sage OR 1/4 cup chopped fresh sage 

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

4 pounds dried bread cubes (about 33-35 cups)

Preheat oven to 325° F.  Sauté onion and celery in butter until lightly browned.  Add water or stock and salt, pepper and poultry seasonings.  Cook until hot.  Remove from heat and add bread.   Toss lightly until thoroughly mixed.  Avoid overmixing to prevent soggy, compacted dressing.  Stuffing should be moist but not wet.  Transfer to prepared pans.  Bake for 45-60 minutes or until heated through.  Do not overcook.  

HINT:  Use 3 ounces of poultry base added to the 1 gallon of water.  Stock or soup base is a concentration of cooked meat, poultry, seafood or vegetables, plus cooking juices and seasonings.  It generally comes in a puree or paste-like form.  Most are highly salted.  Reduce or omit salt from the recipe when using the base.  Find this product in some supermarkets or in restaurant or catering supply stores.  

Variations:
Sausage: Reduce amount of bread cubes by about 1 cup.  Add 2 pounds pork sausage, cooked and well-drained.  

Apple:  Reduce amount of bread cubes by about 1 cup.  Add 1 pound tart apples, finely chopped, to the bread and liquid mixture

Mushroom: Reduce celery and by about 1 cup each.  Sauté 2 pounds fresh mushrooms with the vegetables

Chestnut:  Reduce amount of bread cubes by about 1/2 cup.  Add 1 pound cooked, chopped chestnuts.  

Oyster:  Add 1½ pounds oysters to the bread and liquid mixture

Fruit and Nut: Add 1 pound raisins or dried cranberries and 2 cups chopped pecans, walnuts or almonds to the bread and liquid mixture.  Lightly brown the nuts in 1 stick of butter before adding to stuffing

Cornbread Stuffing
Makes approximately 2 13" x  9" x 2" pans.  Oil pans or baking dishes.  About 1/2 cup serving size

24 cups dried cornbread cubes

8 cups dried bread cubes

2 ½ - 3 cups chopped onions, about 1 pound 

3 cups chopped celery, about 1 pound

1 stick butter

3 quarts hot water or chicken stock, more or less depending on dryness of the cornbread.  Stock will give better flavor to the stuffing,  Reduce salt if stock contains salt

1 tablespoon salt, or to taste

Ground black pepper to taste

Hot red pepper to taste.  

1 tablespoons ground poultry seasoning

Preheat oven to 375° F.  Sauté onion and celery in butter until lightly browned.  Add water or stock and salt, pepper and poultry seasoning.  Cook until hot.  Remove from heat and add cornbread and bread cubes.   Toss lightly until thoroughly mixed.  Avoid overmixing to prevent soggy, compacted dressing.  Stuffing should be moist but not wet.  Transfer to prepared pans.  Bake for 25-35 minutes or until heated through.  Do not overcook.  

HINT:  Use 3 ounces of poultry base added to the 1 gallon of water.  Stock or soup base is a concentration of cooked meat, poultry, seafood or vegetables, plus cooking juices and seasonings.  It generally comes in a puree or paste-like form.  Most are highly salted.  Reduce or omit salt from the recipe when using the base.  Find this product in some supermarkets or in restaurant or catering supply stores.  

Variations:
Sausage or Bacon: Reduce amount of bread cubes by about 1 cup.  Add 2 pounds pork sausage, cooked and well-drained.   For bacon: Cook 1 pound of bacon in a large skillet until crisp.  Drain well and crumble.  Add to stuffing mixture.  Reduce butter in recipe by 1-2 tablespoons and add about 4 tablespoons bacon fat to cook onions and celery

Southwestern: Reduce onion and celery by 1 cup each.  Add 1 cup diced red pepper, 1 cup diced green pepper and 3-4 tablespoons (or to taste) chopped fresh jalapeno pepper to the onion and celery sauté.  Add 1½  pounds chopped chorizo, cooked and well-drained.  Add 1/2 tablespoon or more ground cumin (optional).  

Pecan: Add about 2 cups roasted and coarsely chopped pecans