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These Gluten Free Stuffing Balls with bacon are a great side for any Sunday Roast or Christmas dinner. Packed with sausage meat, chopped walnuts and apricots and wrapped in smoked bacon, this gluten free stuffing recipe is the perfect mix of sweet and salty.
Notes on This Gluten Free Stuffing Balls Recipe
- Why choose this recipe? These gluten free stuffing balls only use 7 ingredients and are so easy to make! Made the British way (unlike my gluten free Thanksgiving stuffing recipe) with gluten free breadcrumbs and sausage meat.
- Christmas Side: With chopped walnuts and apricots and wrapped in bacon this gluten free stuffing recipe is on of my fave Christmas dinner sides. Serve it with lots of gluten free gravy and gluten free bread sauce, plus all the trimmings from crispy roast potatoes to gluten free Yorkshire puddings!
- Make Ahead: These apricot and walnut stuffing balls can easily be made a day or two ahead and kept in the fridge, or can be frozen to save time on the day. You can even cook them straight from frozen!
- Updated for 2025: This recipe was first published in 2020 but I’ve updated it for 2025 with new photos and step-by-step images as well as detailed instructions on how to prepare these in advance to make life easier.
Table of Contents
Ingredients and Substitutions
There’s a printable recipe card below for these gluten free Christmas stuffing balls with the full quantities. But here are the main ingredients and ideas for any swaps.
- Gluten Free Sausage Meat: You can either buy gluten free sausage meat or use gluten free sausages with the skins removed. Most supermarkets in the UK sell gluten free sausagemeat nowadays, especially around Christmas. But always double check labels!
- Onion: I use a standard brown onion but a red onion or shallots would work too.
- Dried Apricots: If you’re not a fan of fruit in stuffing you can omit these. Dried cranberries also work really well for a Christmas twist.
- Walnuts: For a nut-free stuffing omit these. You could also use chopped pecans.
- Thyme: Or you could use sage if you prefer.
- Gluten Free Bread: This is a great way to use up leftover, stale or holey gluten free bread. I find white bread works best, or use some homemade gluten free breadcrumbs if you’ve already made a stash!
- Bacon: I use smoked, streaky bacon for maximum flavour. Unsmoked also works.
How to Make Gluten Free Stuffing Balls
There’s a printable recipe card below with the method. But here are some step-by-step photos to show you how easy this gluten free stuffing balls recipe is to make.
To Make These Stuffing Balls Ahead of Time
If you’re making these bacon wrapped stuffing balls for a special occasion like Christmas Dinner and want to save time on the big day, here’s how to get ahead:
- Make the stuffing balls up to the point of wrapping in bacon.
- Place the raw, bacon-wrapped balls in one layer on a baking sheet and freeze.
- Once frozen, decant into a tub or bag to store in the freezer.
- On the day, preheat the oven and cook as directed from frozen, plus 10 minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are some FAQs about this easy gluten free stuffing recipe – if you can’t find the answer to your question here or in the post above, please comment and I’ll try answer!
If you want to make these ahead of time to cook from frozen, I have instructions on how to do this. You can also freeze the cooked stuffing balls – then reheat from frozen in the oven or air fryer to eat them.
I love to serve these up with all the trimmings of a roast dinner – because why should being gluten free mean missing out? Think slow cooker gammon, crispy roast potatoes, gluten free cauliflower cheese, honey roast carrots and parsnips and my delicious Make Ahead Gravy.
Gluten Free Stuffing Balls Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tsp oil
- 1 large onion, (finely chopped)
- 600 g gluten free sausage meat, (approx 10 gluten free sausages)
- 100 g dried apricots, (roughly chopped)
- 90 g walnut halves, (roughly chopped)
- 1 tbsp dried thyme
- 4 slices gluten free bread
- Salt and pepper
- 12 rashers smoked streaky bacon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200’C / Fan 180’C / Gas Mark 6.
- Add the oil and finely chopped onion to a frying pan and place on a medium-to-low heat. Gently fry the onions for around 4-5 minutes until soft, then remove from the heat to cool slightly.
- Add the sausage meat to a large bowl. If using sausages, remove the skins using a sharp knife – add the meat to the bowl and discard the skins.
- Add the chopped apricots, walnuts and dried thyme to the bowl. Place the bread slices in a food processor and blitz to form crumbs. Add the breadcrumbs to the sausage mixture.
- Generously season with salt and pepper then, using your hands, ‘mush’ the mixture together until it is fully combined.
- Divide the mixture into 12 and roll into balls. Wrap each ball with a rasher of streaky bacon then place on a baking tray – make sure the bit where the ends of the bacon meet goes at the bottom so it doesn’t unravel!
- Place the stuffing balls in the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes until the bacon is crispy and the meat is brown. Remove from the oven and serve immediately.
Notes
- Storing and Freezing: These stuffing balls are great for making ahead of time – simply complete stages 1-6 and then freeze the stuffing balls on a tray. Once frozen, transfer to a bag or tub to store. Defrost overnight then cook as per stage 7, or cook straight from frozen and add 10 minutes to the total cooking time.
- Variations: Try mixing this up by adding dried cranberries or chopped dried apple in place of apricot, or fresh sage instead of thyme.
Nutrition
More Gluten Free Roast Dinner Recipes
If you like this gluten free roast potatoes recipe then make sure you check out these other gluten free recipes for a roast dinner too, plus all my Christmas Dinner recipes.
- Gluten Free Yorkshire Puddings
- Sprouts with Bacon and Chestnuts
- Gluten and Dairy Free Gravy
- The Best Pigs in Blankets
- Gluten Free Cauliflower Cheese
- Christmas Roast Chicken
- Make Ahead Gravy
- Honey Roast Carrots and Parsnips
- Air Fryer Roast Potatoes
- Vegan Miso Gravy
- Cheesy Mashed Potatoes
- Gluten Free Thanksgiving Stuffing
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OMGosh, this stuffing is divine. So easy to make. I did add some sage as well but only because my sage is going crazy. Thanks so much for sharing this recipe. It’s going to be a regular on our table.
You’re so welcome, am very glad you enjoyed it!