French Onion Stuffing

Step 1

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spread bread on a rimmed baking sheet, and bake until very dry and light golden, about 15 minutes. Remove bread and increase oven temperature to 425 degrees. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with butter.

Step 2

Meanwhile, in a large pot with a lid, heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium. Add celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 5 minutes. Stir in garlic until fragrant, 30 seconds. Add mushrooms, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are tender and mixture is dry, about 5 minutes. Stir in thyme leaves and transfer mixture to a large bowl.

Step 3

In the same pot, add the remaining 2 tablespoons oil and melt 6 tablespoons of the butter over medium. Add onions and thyme sprig, season with salt and pepper, and stir to evenly coat in the oil and butter. Cover and cook, stirring after 5 minutes, until onions soften and reduce in volume, about 10 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high and cook uncovered, stirring frequently to scrape up browned bits, until onions are very soft and deep golden, about 25 minutes. Reserve 1 cup of the onions in a small bowl.

Step 4

Add wine to pot and stir until all of the liquid is absorbed, about 1 minute. Add broth and bring to a boil over high. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 5 minutes to allow flavors to meld; discard the thyme sprig. Remove from the heat.

Step 5

Add eggs to the mushroom mixture in the large bowl and mix well. Add the bread, then pour over the onion mixture. Season with salt and pepper, and gently toss until well combined. Transfer to the prepared baking dish. Top with the reserved onions and dot with the remaining 2 tablespoons butter.

Step 6

Cover tightly with foil and bake until stuffing is hot throughout, 30 minutes. Uncover and continue to bake until crisp in spots, about 15 minutes longer. Garnish with chives and serve warm.