In warm regions, chestnut trees grow in gardens, parks and forests, from which chestnuts fall in autumn. Who doesn’t think about the aroma of roasted and wonderfully sweet fruits? In this article you can read how chestnuts can be prepared and used for sweet and savory recipes.
- Chestnut spreads
- Chestnut cookies
- Seitan rolls with chestnut and sage filling
Chestnuts ripen and fall from trees between September and December. During the season they are collected and must be consumed quickly because they do not take long to spoil (in fact, it is not difficult to acquire chestnuts that have already left their best moment behind.
When roasted they acquire a floury texture and a sweet and aromatic flavor. You can chop directly out of the oven or pan, as well as process them for a variety of recipes.
CHESTNUT SPREADS
You can make yourself a delicious cream from boiled and peeled chestnuts along with butter, honey and oatmeal. It tastes much better than chocolate cream and other spreads.
Ingredients:
- 300 g chestnuts (with skin, corresponds to 240 g of precooked and peeled chestnuts)
- 4 tablespoons cashew butter
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons oatmeal cream
- Vanilla extract
- Salt
Elaboration:
- With the tip of a knife make a cross on the chestnuts and simmer them for ten minutes in a saucepan with boiling water.
- Let the boiled chestnuts cool briefly and then peel them.
- Mix the hot chestnuts in the blender along with the butter, honey and oatmeal.
- Season with a pinch of salt and a little vanilla extract.
If you find that the consistency is too firm, you can add two to four tablespoons of plant-based milk.
Put the cream in a jar with a screw cap. This spreadable can be stored in the refrigerator for a week.
It can also be frozen, although this can affect consistency. You can pass it again through the mixer to recover creaminess.
CHESTNUT COOKIES
Chestnut-flavored cookies are a tasty snack with a cup of coffee or an infusion.
Ingredients:
- 100 g cold organic margarine
- 50 g brown sugar
- 200 g chestnut puree
- 250 g wheat or spelt flour
- 2 level teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla flavor (optional)
If you do not have chestnut puree on hand, you can easily prepare the indicated amount yourself: cook 250 grams of chestnuts in water, peel them and puree them until you get a fine cream in a food processor.
Elaboration:
- Mix all the ingredients until you get a firm dough. Next, form a ball and place it in the fridge for at least an hour.
- Stretch the dough and cut the cookies with a mold or glass. If you prefer, you can form a roll about four centimeters thick from the dough and cut it into slices just under a centimeter thick.
- Spread the cookies with a little space between them on a greased or baking paper-lined tray.
- Bake at 180°C top/bottom temperature or in a 160°C fan oven for about 15 minutes. Let the cookies cool and take on consistency on the baking sheet itself.
SEITAN ROLLS WITH CHESTNUT AND SAGE FILLING
This seitan recipe with a creamy, slightly sweet and sour filling of chestnuts and pickled cucumbers shows that homemade rolls can also be made without meat.
Ingredients (for about 8 small rolls)
- 125 g gluten
- 1 tablespoon spice powder (for example, a mixture of onion, paprika, cumin, coriander, chili, ginger, turmeric, nutmeg, and pepper)
- 50 ml soy sauce
- 150 ml water
- 1 teaspoon salt
Ingredients (for filling):
- 100 g precooked chestnuts
- 1-2 cloves garlic
- 2-3 pickled pickles
- 1/2 small red onion
- 1/2 bunch parsley
- 5-10 sage leaves
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon unbittered brewer’s yeast
- Salt
- Pepper
- A little water if needed
- Olive oil for frying
Elaboration:
- Mix gluten, powdered spices and salt. Add water, knead and let the dough stand for ten minutes.
- Divide the dough into eight equal parts and spread each between two layers of baking paper or with a stainless-steel nonstick roller with a thickness of 0.5 cm.
- For the filling, put the precooked chestnuts and all the spices and herbs in a blender until you get a smooth dough. Add some water if needed.
- Cut the onion and cucumber into long strips. Spread a teaspoon of the chestnut mixture on each of the seitan fillets, cover with a cucumber strip and a little onion and roll. Seal the roll with kitchen thread or chopsticks.
- Heat the oil in a large skillet with a lid and fry the rolls all over.
- Deglaze with water and let the rolls cook for about 30 minutes with the lid closed, spinning from time to time.
