During this time of the year, Dev is counting down the days until Halloween. I, on the other hand, am counting down the days until Christmas. Every year, I drive her bonkers by singing Christmas carols while she puts up spiderwebs. This has become a yearly clash between us. We also butt heads on a very important holiday dish, stuffing. Year after year, we have a battle royale of our family stuffing recipes. Of course, I think I won, and Dev thinks otherwise. So today, I want to share with you my family’s Paleo Old World Chestnut Stuffing.
My family’s recipe definitely wasn’t a Paleo Old World Chestnut Stuffing. It consisted of gluten-y bread and the whole nine. Ever since going paleo, I’ve really missed out on the holiday tradition. That is why, I am adamant to create this guilt-free stuffing recipe, so we can ALL enjoy and satisfy our holiday cravings. This Paleo Old World Chestnut Stuffing is a spruced up version of my dad’s stuffing recipe. It has heavy British influences. Why? Because of British ruled Hong Kong. Chestnuts, liverwurst and all. Let’s get started!
Paleo Old World Chestnut Stuffing Recipe
½ Loaf – Improved Paleo Sandwich Bread (1 inch cubed)
1 – Medium Yellow Onion (Diced)
2 – Shallots (Sliced)
6 – Cloves of Garlic (Minced)
5-6 – Mushrooms (Sliced)
½ – Acorn Squash (Diced)
2 – Stalks Celery (Diced)
½ Cup – Pomegranate Arils
1 Cup – Roasted Chestnuts
1 Tbsp – Fresh Thyme Leaves
1 Tsp – Fresh Sage Leaves (Chopped)
1 Can – Free range Chicken Stock
3 – Pasture Raised Eggs
Kasandrinos Extra Virgin Olive Oil (For Cooking)
¼ Tsp – Fresh Ground Black Pepper
Salt to taste
Meats:
2 – Strips Bacon (Diced)
½ Cup – Liverwurst (Diced)
½ lb – Mulay’s Breakfast Sausage
Add following spiced:
¼ tsp – Ground White Pepper
¼ tsp – Fresh Thyme
½ tsp – Ground Coriander seeds
¼ tsp – Ground Nutmeg
¼ tsp – Ground Mace
1 tsp – Coconut Sugar
There are two ingredients I want to touch base on for the Paleo Old World Chestnut Stuffing. First, chestnuts. You can buy packages of pre-roasted chestnuts
Paleo Old World Chestnut Stuffing Instructions:
1. First, we create the bread crumbs by drying out the cubed sandwich bread in an oven at 275°F for 45 minutes.
2. Once the bread crumbs/croutons are done, we will start by heating 2-3 tbsp of EVOO in an oven safe skillet.
3. On medium low heat, cook the bacon until the fat starts to render. Once the fat starts to render, add the sausage into the skillet until they are cooked with a little pink left.
4. Once cooked, remove the meat from the skillet but leave the grease in the skillet.
5. Turn up the heat to medium-high heat and add onions, shallots, mushrooms, acorn squash and celery. Cook until they are golden brown.
6. Once cooked, add in previously cooked meat, garlic, thyme and sage. Toss everything together until the meat is cooked. Transfer content into a large mixing bowl.
7. Add Croutons, chestnuts, liverwurst into the large mixing bowl. Salt and pepper to taste.
8. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together eggs and chicken stock.
9. Pour in egg mixture and fold everything together.
10. Transfer content back into the skillet. Cover and bake it for 45 minutes at 350°F. Uncover and bake for another 10-15 minutes until the top is crispy.
11. Once done baking, let it rest for 10 minutes. Top with pomegranate arils and serve.
There you have it, my Paleo Old World Chestnut Stuffing recipe. Until next time, eat up my friends!
