Apple, Pancetta & Sage Stuffing

For those of us who like a little old school tradition at Christmas time and serve some form of roast meat and/or hot roasted veggies, there is often stuffing. I love my stuffing and I used to fiddle about putting it inside the turkey or rolling it into my pork. I sometimes used to really get my hands dirty and spread it out under the skin of my turkey. (Much to my sister's horror! No, it not particularly attractive!) Now I have discovered a way to make a delicious stuffing side that is easy and simple and doesn't involve getting intimate with a raw bird. As long as you season your meat and glaze or coat the skin of your turkey with something nice or get a great crackle on your pork, you don't need to cook the meat with the stuffing. This stuffing is cooked in a dish as a side and can easily be done ahead, then reheated just before serving. Give it a go!

Apple, Pancetta & Sage Stuffing
serves 8+ as a side

Ingredients:
2 tbs olive oil
50g butter
4 sage leaves (roughly chopped) or 1 tbs dried sage
1 medium red onion (finely diced or grated)
4 sticks celery (finely chopped or grated)
¼ bunch Italian parsley (stalks finely chopped and leaves picked and roughly chopped)
4 thick slices pancetta
S&P
1 large green apple (cored then chopped or grated)*
1 tbs all purpose seasoning mix*
approx ½ cup chicken stock
¼ cup grated parmesan
4 cups homemade coarse textured breadcrumbs (use day old bread)

Method:

1. Place the oil, butter, onion, celery, parsley stalks, pancetta & sage into a large oven proof dish. Season well with pepper and a little salt.

2. Place into the Combi Steam. Select Hot Air+Steaming/Combination Steam. Set the temperature to 200°C. Cook for 12 minutes or until onion and celery is just softened.

3. Remove the dish and add the apple, seasoning, parmesan, parsley leaves and breadcrumbs to the other ingredients in the dish. Mix to combine well. Pour over the chicken stock, a little at a time, and mix through gently. Continue to add the stock and mix until the stuffing is moist but not wet.

4. Spread the mixture out into the dish but don’t flatten it entirely - so lumps and bumps on the top will give it texture and crunch as it cooks.

5. Place into Combi-Steam and cook for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown on top and just firm when pressed gently.

6. Serve warm.*

Tips:
*For individual portions that are also super cute you can press the mixture into the holes of a greased cupcake tray and bake for 10-12 minutes. Allow to cool slightly before removing.

*I leave the skin on my apple for minimum fuss and a little extra roughage.
*All purpose seasoning mixes are available in the herb and spice aisle of your supermarket. We used Masterfoods brand.
*The stuffing can be made in advance and frozen for up to 2 weeks. Allow to thaw and Regenerate on 150°C 30 minutes before serving (or use RegenerateOMatic crispy if you have it). If you don't freeze you can make up to 3 days in advance and store in the fridge then Regenerate, as mentioned above, before serving.

Oh and to make a gluten free version, just make your crumbs from a good gluten free bread and choose a gluten free seasoning mix. Easy!

Happy Combi-Steaming!

Yours in the kitchen,

The CSQ. x