24 Dec Recipe: Victor’s Pork & Fennel Stuffing Loaf

If your family and friends are anything like mine, they love stuffing! This recipe was born out of the need to make a large quantity of stuffing that was too much to fit inside even a 12kg bird. These loaves of stuffing are easy to make and manage in a busy kitchen. You can bake ahead, reheat quickly, slice & serve. Enjoy! (especially you, Will!)

Ingredients
1 kilo of pork sausages casing removed
1.5 loaves day old white bread crust removed cut into cubes
2 onions, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 apples, cored and chopped
1 cups pecans
6 cloves garlic, diced
8 eggs
1/2 bunch parsley, chopped
2 tbsp fresh thyme
2 tbsp dried fennel, crushed
2 tbsp butter
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
salt & pepper (to taste)
4 tbsp olive oil

Method

1. In a large skillet, combine the olive oil and sausage and cook over medium-high heat, breaking the sausage up with a spoon until crumbled, browned and crisp, about 10 minutes. Transfer to paper towels and set aside. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the fat in the pan and return it to medium heat.

2. Add the celery, onion, garlic and apples to the pan and cook, stirring frequently, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add 1 teaspoon of the salt and freshly ground black pepper and the crushed fennel and cook for 2 minutes.

3. Preheat the oven to 200°C. In a large mixing bowl, toss the bread cubes with the sausage, vegetables, pecans, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and eggs and combine till wet. Then add in the fresh parsley and thyme and combine. Season with pepper.

4. In a large measuring cup, combine the stock, eggs and remaining 1⁄2 teaspoon of salt and freshly ground black pepper and whisk to break up the eggs. Pour over the bread mixture and let stand for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the chopped parsley, fresh thyme, pecans and eggs and cooked sausage and mix thoroughly till incorporated and wet.

5. Take two pieces large pieces of baking paper and two large pieces of aluminum foil and lay flat on the counter. Butter them or spray the baking paper with olive oil and then lay stuffing down the centre and then down centre of the foil in a log shape. Leave room at the ends. Fold foil over stuffing on the baking paper and roll into a log and seal. Place in preheated oven and bake for 50-60 minutes at 200 degrees. Take out and rest for 10 minutes and remove from foil and slice thick. Serve with gravy.

Serves12-15.