Step 1

Preheat the oven to 350° F. Generously grease 2 jumbo muffin tins with butter.

Step 2

Melt the 8 Tablespoons of butter in a large pot over medium to medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery, and bay leaf and saute until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the apple, chopped pecans, cherries, sage, and thyme. Stir to combine and saute until everything is soft and the cherries have plumped just a bit, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and remove the bay leaf from the mixture. Set aside.

Step 3

Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, whisk the eggs and then whisk the broth into the eggs.

Step 4

Add the bread cubes and the egg mixture to the cooked onion mixture. Toss until everything is evenly coated and the bread cubes soak up the liquid.

Step 5

Fill each of the 12 jumbo muffin tin cups with 3/4 cup of the mixture. If any is leftover, just divide it evenly amongst the 12 muffins.

Step 6

Using your fingers, gently press the stuffing mixture against the bottom and the sides of the muffin tin cups to make sure the stuffing mixture is compact. This will hold the muffins together and give you those crispy edges!

Step 7

Optional: add 3 whole pecans to the top of each muffin in a "flower" design as seen above.

Step 8

Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the muffins are browned on the top. Remove from the oven and let sit in the muffin tins for 10 minutes. Then remove and transfer to a wire rack.

Step 9

Serve and enjoy!