Traditional Christmas bread sauce

Method
Prep:20min  ›  Cook:25min  ›  Ready in:45min 

1. Roughly break the bread into chunks then place in a food processor to make chunky crumbs, do not over process.
2. In a large saucepan over a medium heat, melt the butter then add the sage; fry until crispy, but not burned, reducing the heat if necessary. Add the onions, and garlic and cook and stir until soft, do not allow to brown. Sprinkle in the cloves, bay leaves, mace and nutmeg and stir well; allow to cook gently for a few minutes then toss in the bread and stir to coat with all the lovely flavours; the sage should break up naturally, but help it along if necessary. Season generously.
3. Begin adding the milk, stirring constantly. The bread sauce will begin as a thick paste, but you are going for a porridge consistency; you may not need to use all of the milk. Once the desired consistency is reached, either cover and store in the fridge until needed (up to 3 days), or transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle with a little nutmeg on top.

If reheating...

If reheating after storing in the fridge, you will need to add more milk as it will have become very thick overnight. Just stir and add milk over a gentle heat until desired consistency is reached.