Homemade chestnut and cocoa jam is a delicious preserve, allowing us to enjoy this wonderful fruit even when it is out of season. The procedure I have described is also suitable for chestnuts, like the ones I used. Making chestnut jam is very easy, even if the process is divided into several phases, and success is guaranteed. It is a recipe suitable for everyone because it is completely vegetarian; in fact, it does not contain any type of animal fat, dairy products, or eggs. With this delicious cream, we can create delightful spoon desserts, fill or decorate cakes and ice creams. I recommend using small jars, about 125/200 grams (4.4/7.1 oz), because they can be consumed more quickly this way.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 4 Hours
- Portions: approximately 2.6 lbs
- Cooking methods: Stove
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter
Ingredients
- 2.2 lbs Chestnuts
- 1.8 oz Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
- 2 tablespoons Rum
- as needed Water
- as needed Ground Cinnamon
- 0.07 oz Fine Salt
- as needed Sugar
Preparation
For every kilogram (2.2 lbs) of chestnut puree obtained, calculate 60% water and 50% sugar. In my case, for 880 grams (31 oz) of puree, I added 18 oz of water and 440 grams (15 oz) of sugar.
1) Start by peeling the chestnuts, removing the outer shell with a small knife.
2) Once done, put them in a large pot covered with water. Cook the chestnuts until they can be pierced with a fork. In my case, using large chestnuts, it took 20 minutes; otherwise, small/medium-sized chestnuts require no more than 10/15 minutes. Be careful not to overcook them, as they would crumble completely, making it difficult to remove the remaining skin.
3) Drain the chestnuts, add cold water, and remove the skin (to facilitate this operation, it is better to keep them in water until finished).
4) Transfer the chestnuts to a blender and puree them.
5) Put the chestnut puree in a pot, add sugar, sifted cocoa powder, rum (or another liquor of your choice, such as arancello, Strega, for example), a pinch of cinnamon, salt, and water.
6) Stir with a steel whisk and cook on a low flame for about 25/30 minutes, stirring often. You should get a soft and dense jam, easy to spread, not liquid but not too hard either.
7) Fill sterilized jars up to one centimeter (0.4 inch) from the rim, gently tap the base of the jar on a soft surface to fill all the empty spaces, tightly close them, and turn them upside down to allow the vacuum to form.
8) Let them cool without touching them for an entire night. The chestnut and cocoa jam is ready to be enjoyed and used. Opened jars should be stored in the refrigerator and consumed in a short time.
Notes
This delicious jam can also be made without cocoa. In this case, the amount of sugar will be 35% of the weight of the chestnut puree.
