The chestnut and cocoa cake is the perfect dessert for these autumn days! This unique cake stands out for its enveloping chestnut flavor and its irresistibly soft and slightly moist texture. What makes it special? My chestnut and cocoa cake is made without flour and without butter, but with a good amount of boiled chestnuts, which give it the right structure and a rich, satisfying flavor, sure to win over the most refined palates.
The recipe for this chestnut and cocoa cake is my invention: I wanted to recreate the texture of this chocolate and ricotta cake without using ricotta or other cheeses and giving it a more structured flavor, so to speak. Versatile and appreciated by everyone – celiacs, but also lactose intolerant if cow’s milk is replaced with plant-based milk – this chestnut cake is perfect enjoyed on its own or accompanied by a sweet touch of whipped cream. A delicacy that goes beyond dietary restrictions, offering everyone the opportunity to delight their palate with a typical autumnal dessert with a unique character.
You might also like:
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 8 people
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter
- Energy 208.30 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 26.74 (g) of which sugars 18.48 (g)
- Proteins 4.31 (g)
- Fat 10.42 (g) of which saturated 2.10 (g)of which unsaturated 7.56 (g)
- Fibers 3.10 (g)
- Sodium 27.24 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 80 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients for a 20 cm (8-inch) chestnut and cocoa cake
If you are celiac make sure that the unsweetened cocoa and baking powder have the label “gluten-free”.
- 9 oz chestnuts, boiled (and peeled, about 14 oz raw)
- 0.42 cup milk (dairy or plant-based)
- 3 eggs (medium)
- 0.6 cup sugar
- 0.25 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 0.25 cup sunflower oil
- 1.5 tsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp rum (or half a vial of rum flavoring)
Tools
- 1 Pressure Cooker
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Mixer
- Electric Whisk
- 1 Cake Pan 20 cm (8 inches) in diameter
- Parchment Paper
How to make the flourless chestnut and cocoa cake
For the English version of this recipe click here!
To make the chestnut cake, start by boiling the chestnuts. The easiest and fastest method, if you have it, is the pressure cooker: I explain the whole process in this article. If you don’t have one, you can use a regular pot: after washing them well, cut into the rounded part and boil them in water for about 45 minutes; drain them and let them cool just enough to be handled. Then peel them, removing even the inner skin (1). You should obtain 9 oz of clean chestnut pulp.
Place them in a mixer and add the milk (2). Blend them as much as you can, because at some point the mixer will stop due to the pasty consistency of the chestnuts. At this point, also add one egg (3).
Blend again until you obtain a fluid and fairly homogeneous mixture (4). Set it aside. In a bowl, crack the remaining two eggs and add the sugar (5). Beat them with the electric whisk for a few minutes, until you obtain a frothy mixture (6).
Then add the chestnut puree and the oil (7). Work the batter again with the whisk to combine all the ingredients. Finally, add the cocoa, rum (or rum flavoring), and baking powder (8).
Continue beating the batter with the electric whisk until you get a homogeneous and fairly fluid mixture (9).
Line a 20 cm cake pan with parchment paper. If you don’t have one of this size, consult this article which will help you recalculate the ingredient quantities based on your pan size. Pour the chestnut cake batter and level it well with the back of a spoon (10).
Bake the chestnut and cocoa cake in a preheated oven at 170°C (338°F) (static) for 45-50 minutes. Towards the end of cooking, test by inserting a skewer into the cake: keep in mind that this chestnut cake needs to remain slightly moist inside, so the skewer should come out just slightly dirty with batter. If you notice that the batter is still liquid, continue cooking for another 5-10 minutes.
Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool completely (11), then remove it from the cake pan and discard the parchment paper.
You can serve the chestnut and cocoa cake as is, dusted with a little powdered sugar, or accompanied by a dollop of whipped cream. With its slightly moist texture, it is perfect served at the end of a meal with coffee, or enjoyed as a snack
Storage
You can store the chestnut and cocoa cake for about 3 days at room temperature. Due to its moist texture, however, it is preferable not to put it in a closed container but to cover it with a dessert cover that allows air to pass through to prevent it from molding.
Tips and Variations
Chestnuts are quite difficult to blend due to their pasty consistency. The best tool to obtain a puree would actually be a manual food mill, the one with interchangeable disks. If you have it, you can use it to puree the boiled chestnuts alone, using a disk with medium-sized holes. Once you have the puree, put it in a bowl and only add the milk, mixing it carefully. The egg that I added in the mixer just to blend the chestnuts better, you will instead add to the other two eggs and sugar and beat with the whisk.
An extra idea to make this cake even more delicious and scenic? Cover it with whipped cream and crumble some marron glacé on top!
FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
What can I use instead of rum?
The sweet flavor of rum pairs perfectly with chestnuts. If you don’t want to use alcohol, you can substitute with half a vial of rum flavoring. If you really don’t like the flavor, you can flavor the cake with half a vial of vanilla flavoring.
