Chestnut And Watercress Stuffing Food

CHESTNUT AND WATERCRESS STUFFING

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Tear bread into rough pieces. Place in the bowl of a food processor; pulse until bread is in coarse crumbs, about 30 seconds. Spread crumbs onto a baking sheet. Bake until crumbs are dry and pale golden, about 12 minutes.
• Heat butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. When hot, add onion and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are softened, about 3 minutes. Push to one side of pan; add chicken livers. Brown chicken livers on both sides, about 5 minutes. Remove pan from heat.
• Chop chicken livers into 1/8- to 1/4-inch pieces. Toss in a large bowl with onion, celery, breadcrumbs, chestnuts, rosemary, salt, pepper to taste, cream, Cognac, and watercress.

ROAST TURKEY WITH CHESTNUT STUFFING

Steps:

• First make the stuffing. Pour the madeira or wine into a bowl, then crumble in the mushrooms. Fry the onions in the butter for 10 mins, until golden. Cool, then mix with the thyme leaves, the mushrooms and their soaking liquid, and all remaining ingredients, apart from 8 of the chestnuts and the bacon. Season well.
• Set aside half of the stuffing. Line a greased 500g loaf tin with bacon. Pack the rest of the stuffing into the tin, then bring the rashers round over the top and secure in place with cocktail sticks. Use the reserved chestnuts to fill the spaces where the bacon meets. Chill until ready to cook. This will keep in the fridge uncooked for 2 days or can be frozen for up to a month.
• Prepare the turkey. The night before, put the onion quarters, reserved lemon halves and thyme sprigs in the cavity between the legs. Pack the reserved stuffing into the neck end. Secure the neck skin with skewers and tie the legs together. Weigh the turkey. Calculate the cooking time at 40 mins per kilo, plus 20 mins.
• Put a large sheet of extra-wide foil in a large roasting tin and put the turkey on top. Smear the breast with the butter, then grate over half of the nutmeg and season well. Cover with bacon, then pour over the glass of madeira or wine. Seal the foil well to make a parcel. Chill overnight.
• On the day, take the turkey out of the fridge 1 hr before roasting. Heat oven to 190C/fan 170C/gas 5. Put the turkey in the oven; then, 90 mins before the end of cooking, remove foil and bacon, and drain off the juices from the tin to use in the gravy. To test whether the turkey is cooked, push a skewer into the thickest part of the thigh - the juices should run clear. If they are pinkish, cook for 15 mins more, then test again.
• Transfer the turkey to a platter, cover with foil, then a couple of tea towels, and allow to rest for at least 30 mins before carving. Meanwhile, cook the stuffing loaf for 30 mins and reheat the bacon. Garnish with watercress and serve the stuffing loaf separately.

CHESTNUT STUFFING

Steps:

• Spread bread cubes in single layers on baking sheets. Let dry at room temperature, uncovered, overnight.
• Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil. Add chestnuts; cook until soft, about 20 minutes. Drain; let cool slightly. Peel and quarter chestnuts; set aside. Peeled chestnuts can be refrigerated in an airtight container 2 to 3 days.
• Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and celery; cook, stirring, until onions are translucent, about 10 minutes. Add sage; cook 3 minutes. Stir in 1/2 cup stock; cook until reduced by half, about 5 minutes.
• Transfer onion mixture to a large bowl. Add remaining 4 1/2 cups stock, the chestnuts, bread, salt, and parsley; season with pepper. Toss to combine. If not stuffing turkey, transfer to a buttered 17-by-12-inch baking dish. Cover; bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Uncover; bake until hot and golden brown, 30 minutes more.

BACON-WRAPPED WATER CHESTNUTS

Steps:

• Combine the water chestnuts and soy sauce in a resealable plastic bag and let marinate at room temperature, tossing and massaging the bag occasionally, for 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Wrap each water chestnut in a piece of bacon and secure with a toothpick. Set a cooling rack into a rimmed baking sheet and arrange the bacon-wrapped water chestnuts on top. Bake until the bacon renders its fat and is crisp, about 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, stir together the ketchup, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce and 1/3 cup water in a bowl to make a sauce.
• Remove the baking sheet from the oven and carefully lift the cooling rack off the baking sheet. Drain away any fat in the baking sheet and wipe dry with paper towels. Line the baking sheet with foil and lightly spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray. Carefully transfer the bacon-wrapped water chestnuts to the bowl with the sauce, swirling to fully coat, then spread out on the baking sheet.
• Return the baking sheet to the oven and bake, tossing every few minutes, until the sauce is reduced to a sticky glaze, about 15 minutes. Immediately transfer the bacon-wrapped water chestnuts to a warm serving platter. Sprinkle with pepper and serve while hot.

ROASTED CHESTNUT SAUSAGE DRESSING

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and butter a 9 by 11-inch baking dish.
• In a food processor puree the carrot, onion, celery and sage until you have a fine pulp. Set a large skillet over medium-high heat and brown the sausage in a little olive oil. Once you have a nice brown color and the fat has rendered - about 5 minutes, use a slotted spoon to remove the sausage and place in a large mixing bowl. Add the vegetable pulp to the pan and saute until most of the moisture has evaporated. Season with salt and pepper. Add to the mixing bowl with the sausage and also add the bread crumbs and chestnuts.
• Mix together chicken stock, cream and egg. Pour this wet mixture over the dressing mix. Season and fold everything together. Pour out into the roasting dish and bake for 30 to 35 minutes until golden brown on the top (if it gets too brown before the 30 minutes is up, tent with foil).

CHESTNUT, BACON & CRANBERRY STUFFING

Steps:

• Soak the cranberries in the port for an hour. Fry the onion and bacon gently in the butter, until the onion is tender and the bacon is cooked. Add the garlic and fry for another minute or so.
• Cool slightly, then mix with all the remaining ingredients, including the cranberries and port, adding enough egg to bind - I find it easiest to use my hands. Fry a knob of stuffing in a little butter, taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary.
• To Cook: This stuffing can be baked in a dish, or rolled into balls that will be crisp on the outside and moist inside. To bake, press the stuffing into a greased ovenproof dish in a layer that is around 4cm thick. Bake at 190C/gas 5/fan 170C for about 40 minutes, until browned and, in the case of sausagemeat stuffing, cooked right through. Alternatively, roll into balls that are about 4cm in diameter. Roast the stuffing balls in hot fat (they can be tucked around the turkey or done in a roasting tin of their own) for 30-40 minutes, until crisp and nicely browned on the outside.

CHESTNUT AND CRANBERRY DRESSING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter a 2 1/2 - 3 quart backing dish.
• In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm the stock until steam starts to rise, 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat and add dried cranberries. Set aside.
• In a large frying pan over medium heat, melt the butter and add onion, celery and carrots and saute, stirring occasionally, until tender and translucent, about 2-3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a bowl.
• If using, in same pan, saute the sausage, stirring and crumbling with a fork, until lightly browned and cooked through, about 10 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to the bowl with vegetables.
• In a large bowl, stir the egg while slowly pouring in the stock and cranberries. Add the bread and toss until well blended. Let standing, stirring occasionally, until the stock is absorbed, 6-8 minutes.
• Add the vegetable mixture, chestnuts, sage, thyme and parsley. Season with salt and pepper and stir well to mix. Transfer to prepared baking dish and bake until browned and crispy, about 45-50 minutes.

WATERCRESS STUFFING

Steps:

• Cook onion and celery for about 2 minutes in half the butter or margarine. Add salt, pepper and watercress. Cook until liquid evaporates. Melt remaining butter or margarine and toss with breadcrumbs and other ingredients for stuffing. Use to stuff chicken or game hens.

CHESTNUT STUFFING

Steps:

• Make an incision in each chestnut with a knife. Drop the chestnuts into boiling water and simmer for 10 minutes. Drain and peel the chestnuts, using rubber gloves to protect your fingers.
• Coarsely chop the chestnuts and simmer in the chicken stock until tender. Set aside.
• Melt the butter in the frying pan and saute the shallots with the celery until soft. Mix with the chestnuts, parsley and egg. Season and stuff into the bird cavity.