Can I Form The Gingerbread Stuffing Into Balls Rather Than Baking In A Dish?

Our answer

Nigella's Gingerbread Stuffing (from NIGELLA CHRISTMAS) uses a sticky ginger loaf cake instead of regular breadcrumbs. The combination of spices and sweetness balances well with the salty bacon. Nigella usually cooks the stuffing (or in the US this would be known as a dressing) in a terrine, or you could use a 900g (2-pound) loaf pan.

We suspect that the mixture could be formed into balls but you need to make sure that the uncooked mixture holds together enough, particularly as the stickiness of spiced loaf cakes can vary. Squeeze some of the mixture together in your hands and if it binds easily together then it should be fine. If the mixture falls apart then you may need to add an extra egg to help it bind. We would suggest that you cook the stuffing balls on a baking sheet lined with baking parchment (parchment paper), to reduce the risk of the stuffing sticking to the pan. We suspect that tablespoon-sized stuffing balls will take 15-20 minurtes to cook at 200c/180c Fan/400F. Cut one open and make sure that it is piping hot all of the way through before removing the pan from the oven. If the stuffing ball is not hot in the centre then cook for a further 5 minutes before checking again.