There’s no need to wait for Christmas to enjoy Christmas stuffing. This side dish is so good it deserves a spot at your next dinner party. You can fry up whatever veg you have lying around in your fridge to bulk it up but onion and fresh fennel are ideal.
What you’ll need:
2 x FFMM pork bangers
Olive oil, for frying
1 x stick butter
Sea salt, to taste
Freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
5 x cups sourdough, roughly torn into chunks
1/4 cup pecan nuts
1/4 cup walnuts
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup sultanas
1/2 cup red wine
2 x eggs
2 x cups FFMM chicken stock (or water)
1 x onion, finely sliced
2 x stick celery, finely chopped
1 x fennel bulb, finely sliced plus fronds for garnish
What to do:
1. Preheat the oven to 170 Degrees Celsius
2. Remove sausages from the casing. Heat olive oil in a pan and fry sausage meat, breaking it up as you go. Cook until browned and cooked through.
3. Meanwhile place your breadcrumbs in a large, non-reactive dish.
4. When sausages are cooked, using a slotted spoon, add sausage mix to bread.
5. Gently fry onion, celery and fennel in the oil until softened. Remove with slotted spoon and add to the dish, with bread.
6. Deglaze pan by adding wine and scraping off brown bits from pan. When the wine has reduced by half, add butter and whisk gently. Pour mixture over the bread.
7. In a dry pan, toast nuts until coloured, being careful not to burn them. Add nuts to the bread mix, along with dried fruit.
8. Toss bread mixture, making sure everything is properly mixed. Adjust seasoning if necessary.
9. Crack eggs into a bowl and whisk. Add stock and whisk further. Pour this mixture over bread, incorporating it into the mix. Add more water than necessary - you want it to be slightly wet.
10. Press mixture down into baking dish and cover with lid.
11. Cook in the oven for 25 - 30 minutes, or until cooked through. Remove lid.
12. Increase heat to 220 Degrees Celsius and cook for a few minutes until golden brown.
13. Garnish with fennel fronds and serve immediately.