Step 1

The day before, trim the crusts from the bread and cut into 1" pieces. Transfer the bread to a large wide bowl and leave out overnight to get stale.

Step 2

The next day, preheat the oven to 350°.

Step 3

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat and add the sausage. Break up the meat in the pan with the back of a wooden spoon and cook until most of the sausage has browned.

Step 4

Stir in the celery, bell peppers, onions and leeks to the skillet and cook until the vegetables are softened and fragrant. You can cover the pan to accelerate the cooking, but stir occasionally so they don't stick or burn.

Step 5

Add the green onions, garlic, cayenne pepper, black pepper, thyme and sage and stir into the sausage mixture, cooking for 2-3 minutes until very fragrant. Set aside.

Step 6

Place a fine mesh sieve over a small bowl and pour the oysters into the sieve. Reserve the oyster liquor and set aside.

Step 7

Pick through the oysters to remove any shells that may have been missed during processing. (I found 4 in mine). If your oysters are large, roughly chop them into 1" pieces.

Step 8

Add the oysters to the sausage mixture and stir just to combine.

Step 9

Add the sausage mixture to the stale bread and toss well with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula. Drizzle with the reserved oyster liquor and toss. Add half of the chicken broth and toss well. You want the bread to be moistened, but not sopping. Add more chicken broth as needed. The key is to have the bread moist all the way through, but not sopping wet.

Step 10

Transfer the oyster dressing to a 2 quart casserole dish and spread evenly into the pan. Dot the top of the casserole with cubes of butter.

Step 11

Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the casserole is golden and fragrant.