Baked chestnuts: tips on how to prepare and combine them

Did someone say baked chestnuts? With their intoxicating scent, chestnuts are the real protagonists of the autumn season and, if cooked in the oven, you can be sure to have a good snack or a really tasty, original and always welcome side dish. Chestnuts are a very light food, free of fat and sugar, but high in starch.
There are few ingredients so versatile in the kitchen: chestnuts, in fact, can be used both for making tasty appetizers and appetizers, and for decorating main courses and desserts. The nice thing about these fruits? You don't need a lot of toppings to make them good, because they are, of course!

Baked chestnuts are super simple to make. After a first half hour of soaking, the preparation will be really quick. Following our instructions, soft and golden chestnuts are guaranteed!

How do you make baked chestnuts

To prepare the baked chestnuts, the first thing to do is to put them in a bowl to soak in cold water for about an hour (half an hour if you are short on time), making sure that all the fruits are covered by the water. Once this is done, remove the water and dry the chestnuts by placing them on a clean towel, in order to absorb the excess water. Then comes the slightly more difficult part: it makes horizontal incisions on each chestnut about 2 or 3 cm long. This is a very important step that cannot be skipped: it is precisely this cut that prevents the fruit from exploding due to heat. At this point you can place the chestnuts on a size and cook them in a static oven at 250 °C for 35/40 minutes or in a ventilated oven for 30 minutes at about 230 °C, turning the fruits from time to time to allow a homogeneous cooking. Here are your baked chestnuts ready! Let them cool for a few minutes by wrapping them in a dry and clean cotton towel, then peel them and enjoy them. You'll see, one will pull the other...

How to combine baked chestnuts

As already mentioned, baked chestnuts, once prepared, are truly versatile. In addition to being delicious naturally as a tasty and healthy snack, they are perfect both for decorating gourmet desserts and for preparing side dishes for first and second courses. Not surprisingly, the famous American Thanksgiving turkey is prepared with a chestnut-based filling. However, there are occasions when these wonderful fruits from our mountains are valued at their best.

Chestnut is a typical autumn fruit that embodies all the aromas of the forest. It is therefore ideal at the end of a meal to close with a flourish, especially if the other courses remain on the “autumn” theme and include the typical products of this season, therefore pumpkin, mushrooms, but also cheeses and game. If you love jams then chestnuts can come to your aid in making a tasty appetizer or appetizer. In fact, it is well known that chestnut jam is phenomenal combined with cheeses.
If you want, you can also use them to prepare soups, especially if based on legumes, cereals and aromatic herbs. If you prefer a more substantial first course, then you could consider a nice baked pumpkin and chestnut risotto, a rejuvenating dish ideal for colder evenings.

Obviously, the perfect use for baked chestnuts is in desserts. There are many that include this ingredient, so you're spoiled for choice. In particular, these autumn fruits go well with dried fruit, raisins and are ideal in the most homemade fillings, in which you can consider whether to use baked or boiled chestnuts. What changes is the final texture: in the first case they will be more aromatic and with a more intense flavor, while in the second case they will be softer, sweeter and more delicate. This rule applies, of course, both if you were to prepare a filling for a savory dish and a filling for a dessert

What to drink with baked chestnuts

Baked chestnuts are the best way to end a good meal and, if combined with a good wine, they can really decide the fate of a lunch. Obviously, the choice of wine also depends on the type of use you intend to make of baked chestnuts. If you eat naturally to close a meal or as an aperitif, baked chestnuts go very well with a lively red wine, like a Schiava from Trentino. The situation, on the other hand, is a little different if chestnuts are used to prepare a first course or a dessert. In the case of savory preparations, the ideal remains a good red wine rich in tannins, such as a Lambrusco, perhaps the most appropriate choice in this case. If, on the other hand, baked chestnuts are the protagonists of your dessert, then a wine that is adequate to accompany the dessert is better. In this case, a good passito that is not too sweet can really make a difference.

What if the chestnuts were for the snack? Well, then in this case, all we can do is go back to the Trentino culinary tradition and enjoy a delicious Apple Brulé, also called Apfelglühwein, suitable for the whole family, which you can possibly correct with rum or brandy later to enjoy a slightly more decisive version.

One thing is certain: with baked chestnuts you will win over all your diners, adults and children.
Take a look at our portal to choose the best ingredients to prepare and accompany your chestnuts... you'll see, they'll make a difference