French Noël Stuffing
What better accompaniment to your Christmas bird than a French inspired stuffing?
It looks impressive, has loads of festive ingredients and is full of flavour, with aromatic citrus and spices complementing your chosen poultry perfectly.
Here is an age old recipe of my Aunts that has been passed generationally through the family that will get your Noël juices flowing!
INGREDIENTS FOR "Le Stuffing"
• 1 x 180g sachet of pre cooked chestnuts, roughly chopped ( Merchant Gourmet is an excellent product you can find in most supermarkets )
• 1 orange ( juice )
• 1 lemon ( zest & juice )
• 1 large crunchy apple, peeled and cut into small chunks of less than 1cm • 1 white onion, finely chopped
• 2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 100g chopped chicken liver ( or use the liver & gizzards of your Christmas bird if there is enough )
METHOD
• Gently fry the onion and apple together until the onion is clear, add your chicken livers.
• Mix up the chestnuts and spices, with the juice of the lemon, the juice of the orange, and the zest from the orange. Add a big pinch of salt and some black pepper.
• Empty your mixture into the hot pan of onion and apple, and stir everything together for a few moments, until the chestnuts start to get a bit mushy. Taste and add more seasoning, spice or juice if necessary.
• Momentarily blend in a food processor, or with a hand blender, so that it stick together more easily, but still has plenty of texture.
• Stuff your bird accordingly, or roll it into a large sausage, wrap in bacon and roast separately!
Bon appetit!