CHESTNUT, A REVOLUTIONARY AMONG NUTS
THE PERFECT FORAGED LUNCH: CHESTNUT GNOCCHI WITH MUSHROOMS
Sweet chestnuts. A delicious treat in a prickly burr. I have fond childhood memories of hot, sweet chestnuts bought from street vendors during long, rainy, winter nights. Too hot to handle, they would warm your hands while you were peeling them, and then you would taste the sweet crumbly delight that is the golden-baked nuts. Roasted chestnuts are sweet and nutty, with a delightful earthy undertone.
You are like a chestnut burr, prickly outside, but silky-soft within, and a sweet kernel, if one can only get at it. Love will make you show your heart some day, and then the rough burr will fall off. - Louisa May Alcott
My other memories are of large campfires with friends, where we would roast chestnuts right in their shells, together with sweet corn and potatoes, in the scorching ashes of an open fire at the end of the harvest season. A fresh apple cider would always accompany such gatherings.
Decades later, while staying on Crete in Greece, we had the opportunity to visit a chestnut festival. My mind went wild imagining all kinds of delicious meals and products crafted from chestnuts, that we would find there. After all, it was called a chestnut festival! After arriving in Elos, a traditional village in the southwest part of the island, surrounded by lush greenery and olive groves, we found a beautiful community dancing to traditional Greek music, drinking good wine, and eating roasted chestnuts. It was not what I imagined with respect to a variety of chestnut dishes, but it was truly heartwarming and felt like coming home. By tradition, rural people gather to celebrate the turn of the harvest season, collecting and roasting chestnuts there and then, at the chestnut festival.
There is probably a smell of roasted chestnuts and other good comfortable things all the time, for we are telling Winter Stories - Ghost Stories, or more shame for us - round the Christmas fire; and we have never stirred, except to draw a little nearer to it. - Charles Dickens
And let’s not forget the marrons glacés. Candied chestnuts have always been one of our traditional dishes for Christmas. During the chestnut harvest, which runs from late September to November, we would gather as many chestnuts as we could find during our walks with dogs in the woods. My mother would boil them, and while we were devouring as many as our bellies would stomach, she would peel hers and would put most away in the deep freezer to have on hand for Christmas. Marron glacés were a popular dish in 18th century France. The original recipe required soaking chestnuts in a sugary syrup over several days.
My mother’s recipe is simpler. Take the boiled and peeled chestnuts out of the freezer and let them thaw for a few hours. Put them in a non-stick pan with some butter and sprinkle generously with sugar. Mix constantly until all the sugar has melted. Make sure to cover all chestnuts with the runny caramel. Put in a bowl and let cool completely (do wash the pan immediately). Chestnuts will turn into crunchy crumbly caramels. Before serving, my mother would whip some double cream and gently incorporate the candied chestnuts. A true delight and a mouthwatering dish to include in your Christmas tradition.
Some years ago, when visiting Corsica, we were lucky to get lost in one of the oldest chestnut tree forests in the world. Castanea sativa trees thrive in moist conditions and can live for centuries. The Castagniccia, as the name suggests, is a region of the island with higher altitude and richness of the soil, where century-old chestnut trees thrive. It is a truly magical old forest and the trees are a sight to behold.
“While we have chestnuts, we have bread”, declared the president of Corsica Pascal Paoli in 1758.
For a very long time chestnuts were a basic food source across southern Europe and a staple source of carbs, especially in pre-agricultural times and whenever food was scarce. Roman soldiers were given chestnut porridge before going into battle, and a version of that ancient recipe, called pulenda, is still eaten in Corsica, as well as granaghjoli, flans, cakes, and biscuits. Chestnuts were an important crop for Corsicians, who formed their republic and were secretly sold by Genoese to the French in the mid-18th century (listen to a fascinating podcast on Pascal Paoli and the Corsican War of Independence). “Corsicans continued to tend the chestnut forests and produce flour until WWI, when 1 in 12 Corsicans were killed in war, losing the next generation of land stewards. After nearly 700 years of forest stewardship for chestnut flour, WWI marks the beginning of the decline,” writes Eliza Greenman in Corsican Chestnuts: The Social and Political Landscape. Today, some forests are neglected and sick from abandonment, due to rural gentrification. But chestnuts are still cultivated by around 200 growers. Most of them process their chestnuts into flour, which is governed by precise rules and criteria for making Corsican AOC chestnut flour. The chestnuts are first dried, shelled, and roasted to enhance their flavor. They are then cut up by hand and ground using special granite stones to ensure the finest ground flour. Approximately 300 tones of chestnut flour are produced on Corsica annually.
Chestnuts are little nutritious bombs and are incredibly good and healthy food for our bodies. They are a fantastic source of many vitamins and minerals, carbohydrates, protein, and fiber while being lower in fat and calories than other nuts. They are a rich source of protective antioxidants, such as gallic and ellagic acid, two antioxidants that increase in concentration when cooked. The great thing about chestnuts is, that you can use them in so many different ways and that they pair nicely with a variety of savory and sweet dishes. With their sweet, earthy flavor they pair perfectly with mushrooms, game, meat, vegetables, fruits, cream, and chocolate, among others. Think roasted chestnuts, boiled chestnuts, chestnut flour, chestnut soup, chestnut pasta, chestnut gnocchi, candied chestnuts, chocolate-covered chestnuts, chestnut cake, Castagnaccio Pugliese (Chestnut Flour Cake), chestnut cream, chestnut marmalade, chestnut mousse, chestnut truffles, chestnut smoothie, chestnut porridge, chestnut chutney, chestnut stuffing, chestnut risotto, chestnut pilaf, chestnut stews, the list is endless and your imagination is the only limit. If you are looking for more ideas on how to incorporate chestnuts into your daily menus Tempo di Castagne (Chestnut Time) by Carla Geri Camporesi is a nostalgic cookbook featuring 140 chestnut recipes in all forms and shapes.
OVEN BAKED CHESTNUTS
The simplest is often the most delicious. If you are looking for a way to roast your sweet chestnuts in the conventional oven, look no further.
Wash the chestnuts and score a cross along the round part of the chestnut. Place the cut chestnuts in a large bowl of spring water and leave them to soak for at least 2 hours, better overnight.
Preheat the oven to 175°C (347°F). Discard the water, dry the chestnuts with a kitchen towel, and place them flat on parchment paper on a baking sheet, cut way up. Put them in the middle part of the oven and place a few ice cubes in the bottom of the oven to prevent the chestnuts from drying out. Bake for 20 minutes. Increase the temperature in the oven to 220°C (428°F) and bake for another 10 minutes or a few minutes more (depending on the size of the chestnuts). The shell should be nicely open and the chestnuts golden.
Take them out of the oven, and put them into a bowl. Cover them with a dry cloth so that they retain the heat as long as possible while you peel and munch on them. They go great with fresh apple juice or apple cider. In the unlikely case of any leftovers, you can keep them in the fridge for a few days or freeze them for longer.
CHESTNUT GNOCCHI WITH MUSHROOMS
Most often chestnut gnocchi are made with chestnut flour and potatoes. These chestnut gnocchi are made with boiled and peeled sweet chestnuts. Prepare the mass for chestnut gnocchi 1 day in advance as it has to rest in the fridge overnight.
Chestnut gnocchi (for 2 persons):
200 g sweet chestnuts (boiled and peeled)
1 egg yolk
20 g butter
3 tablespoons of flour
salt and pepper
For mushroom sauce:
300 g fresh mushrooms (mix of porcini, chanterelle, hedgehog, or others)
2 tablespoons butter
1 small onion
30 ml heavy cream
bunch of fresh thyme
bunch of parsley
grated Parmigiano
salt and pepper
Wash the chestnuts and score a cross along the round part of the chestnut. Fill a saucepan with cold water. Add enough water to cover the chestnuts fully. Bring it to a boil. Place chestnuts into the boiling water and cook for approximately 15-20 minutes. Check for doneness, the yellow flesh should be soft and creamy. If it is not fully cooked, boil for another 3-4 minutes. Peel the chestnuts one by one while they’re still warm. Mix all gnocchi ingredients in a mixer or hand until uniform mass forms. Cover the mass with foil and leave in the refrigerator to rest overnight.
Next day, roll the gnocchi mass into ropes, cut into 2 cm (3/4 inch) nuggets, lightly sprinkle with flour, then make ridges by rolling the gnocchi down the gnocchi board or the tines of the fork. Put a pot with salted water on the stove and bring to a boil. Meanwhile, peel and cut onion, then sauté it on butter for 10 minutes or until translucent. Cut your clean mushrooms and sauté them with onion until their juices evaporate. Add fresh herbs, heavy cream, salt and pepper. Meanwhile, prepare a large pot with spring water and bring it to a boil. Add salt and cook the gnocchi in boiling water until they float to the surface. Drain the gnocchi, generously sprinkle with olive oil, and add to the mushroom sauce. Mix well and serve with fresh herbs and grated Parmigiano on top.
In case you would like to make a big batch of chestnut gnocchi while the chestnuts are in season, you can always freeze uncooked chestnut gnocchi by placing them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, freeze to firm (at least a few hours), then transfer the frozen gnocchi to a freezer bag or airtight container. Freezing gnocchi is a great way to preserve it and have it on hand for a quick nutritious meal.
Chestnuts are a very nostalgic food this time of year. So special. They always bring such joy to me as I savour the ritual of preparing and eating them. Always makes me think of the holy days with my mum <3 We boiled them, I love their sweet tenderness in this form. yet i'm inspired to try them roasted this year. Much love.
Castagnaccio is a family staple in my household and my 2yo daughter adores it. Cooking it in Autumn and Winter makes me fly back in time when my grandma was making it for me 💌