Chestnut cream is a very versatile preparation, gluten-free, egg-free, and, if desired, also lactose-free. We can use it as a spoon dessert, as a filling or topping for cakes, pies, cookies, ice cream, and cream puffs. The two preparations I will indicate are: one made with boiled fresh chestnuts (perhaps leftover from previous recipes, so nothing goes to waste) and one made with chestnut flour (ideal when this autumn fruit is out of season). Both are simple, easy, and delicious recipes. The chestnut flour will also give the cream a more pronounced rustic aromatic note compared to fresh fruit.
Recipes with fresh chestnuts and chestnut flour
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Cooking methods: Boiling
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 cups milk (also lactose-free)
- 1/3 cup gluten-free chestnut flour
- 1/3 cup gluten-free unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 pinch fine salt
- 2 teaspoons Strega liqueur
- 1 packet vanillin
- 7 oz peeled fresh chestnuts
- 1 g coarse salt
- 1 leaf bay leaf
- as needed water
- 2 2/3 oz spreadable cheese (also lactose-free)
- 1/2 cup cold milk (also lactose-free)
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder (gluten-free)
- 1 packet vanillin
- 1 teaspoon Strega liqueur
Preparation
Method with chestnut flour
In a saucepan, warm the milk. Meanwhile, in another saucepan, put the sugar, sift the chestnut flour with the cocoa, vanillin, and a pinch of salt. Stir to combine the flours, pour in the warm milk, the liqueur, and with the help of a steel whisk, stir and put on low heat and let thicken, continuing to stir. It will take just over 5 minutes. As soon as the cream thickens, turn it off, pass it through a sieve, and place it in a container to cool. The egg-free chestnut flour cream is ready to use.
Method with boiled chestnuts
After removing the outer shell from the chestnuts, place them in a pot with 1 gram of coarse salt and a bay leaf and cover them with water.
Cover and cook them on low heat for about 20 minutes or until they are tender when pierced with a fork. Be careful they don’t become mushy, as it would otherwise be impossible to remove the peel attached directly to the fruit.
When the chestnuts are cooked, wait about half an hour before touching them to remove the remaining skin.
After completely peeling them, place 150 grams in a blender with all other ingredients, except cocoa, and blend until smooth and very fluid.
Now add both the cocoa and the remaining 50 grams of boiled chestnuts (chopped); incorporate them with a whisk into the rest of the ingredients. The egg-free chestnut cream will immediately gain body, reaching the right consistency, neither liquid nor hard, perfect for many uses.
At this point, we can decide whether to enjoy the chestnut cream with a dusting of unsweetened cocoa, shortbread cookies, madeleines; or if to add whipped cream to make this cream even softer and more delicious. In this case, 1/2 cup of well-whipped fresh cream will be enough to incorporate into the cold chestnut cream.
