Stove Top

Confession time: I'm a big fan of Stove Top stuffing. I know, it's processed, the sodium content is off the charts, and I'm sure your Aunt Sally's homemade stuffing is 1,000 times better. But if holiday meals are all about nostalgia and tradition, I'll be buying that turkey-flavored feat of stuffing engineering for many years to come.

However, I have to vent. Does anyone remember when Stove Top stuffing included chopped onion and celery in the basic cooking directions? Now it's just boil water and 1/4 cup "spread" - what the heck is "spread"? I know it's supposed to mean margarine, but "spread"? I always saute a little onion and celery in the pan before boiling the water - it ups the "je-nais-se-quoi" quotient a bit. Sauteed in butter, by the way, not "spread". It's so much better like this that I'm a bit disappointed that Kraft doesn't include this simple step in the instructions. Must we be that far removed from fresh produce as to eliminate the fresh onion/celery instructions?

Maybe it's time to try my hand at homemade stuffing, but the Stove Top nostalgia lingers...