Chestnut & Almond Stuffing

(Double this recipe for 4-6 people)

INGREDIENTS

  • 16 chestnuts (or 1.5 cup’s worth once peeled); to cut prep time, purchase peeled and roasted chestnuts
  • 1/2 small, white onion, finely chopped
  • 1 medium raw mushroom, washed and chopped, but not too fine
  • 10 almonds, placed in small plastic bag and gently hammered until pieces are between 1/8 and ¼ inch
  • Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg (use nutmeg mill or small kitchen rasp to powder the nutmeg; fresh nutmeg is infinitely better than store-bought powder)
  • 3 tbsps butter
  • 1 tbsp fresh rosemary leaves, chopped
  • 1/2 tsp sage (powder)

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Carefully score an ‘x’ in the chestnuts. Bake them at 400 for 25 minutes. Remove and let cool. Once cool, peel the chestnuts then grind them until they are the consistency of breadcrumbs. If you buy peeled, already roasted chestnuts, just place these in the blender right out of the package or can.
  2. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the onion and sauté for a few minutes.
  3. Stir the ground chestnuts into the butter and onion and add the sage, rosemary, almonds and nutmeg.
  4. Stir until it comes together as a ball then shove the ball inside the cavity of your bird or bake separately in an oven-proof dish at 375 for 15 minutes.

*Apply gentle pressure when purchasing fresh, whole chestnuts. If it feels soft, it’s probably moldy inside.

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