Castania sativa - Sweet chestnut
Fortune favoured us when we found some fresh Sweet chestnuts in a shop that were left over from the Christmas period. They make a tasty stuffing for the turkey, but we also enjoy them made into a nourishing, wholesome soup. The generic name Castania was derived from an ancient town called Castanis in Asia Minor, now Turkey, where Sweet Chestnut trees grew in abundance. The ancient Greeks called it "the acorn of Zeus". The nuts are such a good source of food that in many Mediterranean countries they were a staple food, often dried and ground into flour. Poorer people used to subsist largely on a diet of chestnuts.
The armies of Alexander the Great and then the Romans planted sweet
chestnut trees across much of Europe, so that they could enjoy
this treat of nature wherever they were.
Chestnut Soup - serves 4
450g chestnuts
500 mls milk
freshly ground black pepper & nutmeg
pinch of sea salt
one large onion finely chopped with a clove of garlic cooked in olive or rapseed oil
250 mls vegetable stock
toasted pine nuts & parsley to serve
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slit a cross through the chestnuts shells with a sharp knife before roasting in the oven for 30mins at 180℃. It is important to do this, if you don't you will have a miniature war taking place inside your oven as the chestnuts explod !!!
Whilst they are roasting, cook the onion and garlic in oil until soft, add the milk, vegetable stock and spices, then gently heat them all up. Before it reaches boiling point turn the heat right down and let them infuse. When the chestnuts are ready, wrap them up in a teatowel and allow them to cool before getting the nut out of the shell. Add the chestnuts to the liquid, and cook them all gently together but don't boil, and then purée with a stick blender. This is a rich and elegant soup with a velvety texture. A small portion makes a lovely starter, whilst a larger serving with some lovely bread is a very satisfying lunch or supper.
P.S if you can't stand the thought of preparing and roasting the chestnuts, I know that they are a fiddle. You can buy very good whole roasted chestnuts already prepared in specially sealed vacuum packs. They work very well too.
Next post will be about a fruit that has strong links to the ancient Greeks.
Dearest Rosemary,
ReplyDeleteChestnuts are always great, be it roasted, used in pasta or in soups.
Your photo is magazine worthy!
Locally we cannot find any chestnuts but I find them in Atlanta.
Hugs,
Mariette
Dear Mariette - apart from their lovely flavour Sweet chestnuts are relatively low in calories and fats. Nonetheless, they are a very rich source of minerals, vitamins.
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DeleteThe artwork you use to illustrate this piece is beautiful, Rosemary. I have never had chestnut soup as far as I know, but I have little doubt that I would enjoy it. Roasted chestnuts bought from a street vendor are one of life's treats.
ReplyDeleteRoasted chestnuts from a street vendor always pop out of their shells so easily which is never the case for me. I wonder what there secret is? You would like this soup David it is packed full of flavour.
DeleteInteresting! Never had chestnut soup, or chestnut anything really.
ReplyDeleteIf you ever get the chance Debra then do give them a go.
DeleteHello Rosemary, American chestnuts grew in great forests and were considered to be especially sweet and flavorful, until the chestnut blight killed them in the early 20th century. So many trees died that loggers took a long time to cut them into timber, so that insects made burrows into the wood, resulting in the "wormy chestnut" that is now a prized if odd relic of that period. In Ohio I have a picture frame made of wormy chestnut wood. Your soup looks wonderful, and we can get the cooked and pre-packaged chestnuts here easily.
ReplyDelete--Jim
Hello Jim - I recommend that you make yourself some soup then - I am sure that you will enjoy it. The flavour is lovely and it is very nourishing.
DeleteI don't recall eating anything chestnut related.
ReplyDeleteSounds as if they are more familiar to those of us who live in European.
DeleteI have never tasted a chestnut. Sounds like I need to.
ReplyDeleteIf you every get the change then do try them, they are unlike any other nut that you might have tasted.
DeleteLooks good. Tried collecting then roasting local sweet chestnuts here years ago just out of curiosity but I think they need more sun to ripen fully than we get as they were flat not round like yours. Just watched Oliver Stone's Alexander epic tonight by sheer coincidence. He certainly got around. As a tree mature sweet chestnuts are a favourite- so different from anything else.
ReplyDeleteIt's an easy soup to make - buy some ready prepared, I am sure that you would enjoy it. I would love to see the Alexander epic, was it on TV?
DeleteThere's several different versions of the same film Alexander. It was originally released in 2004 but didn't do as well at the American box office so The director Oliver Stone then reworked it to include further unused footage as he had loads of excess film not used in the first film to explain the story better. I got the 'Alexander:the Final Cut' version from a charity shop. It is regarded (by critics) as something of a flawed masterpiece in that it has many memorable cinematic grand settings, particularly the vivid depiction of Babylon, but had to get a yonng lead actor (Colin Farrell)to play someone aging from 16 to 32 who was part warrior, explorer, military tactician, empire builder, statesman, and bisexual lover- a big ask to fit all that into one film and person so the version I've got from 2007 is extended over a two DVD disc set. It is entertaining though, supposedly the finest version of this film, and the best attempt to film the life of Alexander the Great... so far.
DeleteThat was a lucky charity shop find. It would be interesting to see how he portrayed the Hanging Gardens of Babylon - one of the ancient worlds great mysteries.
DeleteHi Rosemary, I can attest, too, that this is a yummy soup! A young French friend years ago made it for us and I used to make it on and off when I could find chestnut purée (lazy!!). It's also delicious if you add a potimarron pumpkin, too.
ReplyDeleteHurrah - I am happy that someone else has enjoyed this delicious soup. I had to look up a potimarron pumpkin and I see that it also resembles a chestnut flavour which is really good to know - thank you.
DeleteThat soup sounds so good. We don't see chestnuts here although they are grown further south.
ReplyDeleteThey may be available to you in the longlife packs.
DeleteChestnut is one of my favorites in autumn. Chestnut soup is new to me but I can easily imagine your chestnut soup must be so tasty. Getting off the shell and then peeling off inner skin is time-consuming. It’s my husband’s work. We keep them in the freezer and use mainly for “kuri gohan", chestnut rice.
ReplyDeleteYoko
Dear Yoko - knowing how much I love the flavour of sweet chestnuts, I am sure that I would also enjoy your “kuri gohan", chestnut rice.
DeleteDear Rosemary,
ReplyDeleteSomething new for me to try. I found chestnut puree from Amazon. Love them roasted whenever I see them being sold on streets in Europe. Thank you for another great idea from your kitchen.
Dear Gina - as you love the flavour of the roasted chestnuts sold by the street vendors in Europe, I am sure you will enjoy this soup. It's a whole meal in a bowl.
DeleteLooks and sounds right up my alley Rosemary - love soup and chestnuts - will look for 'prepared' ones though! Interesting history of these tasty and really beautiful foods. . . . nuts, berries, fruits never cease to amaze our taste buds and enhance our own kitchen cooking.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of which, today I'm trying a new recipe from Laura Wright's awesome plant-based 'THE FIRST MESS COOKBOOK'. It's 'WEEKNIGHT ROOT VEGETABLE DAL' and looks perfect for a chilly night - served with warmed naan and a glass of good Cabernet Sauvignon in front of the fire!
Stay well dear friend.
Hope you find some sweet chestnuts Mary and make this soup. I am sure that you will find its distinctive flavour very much to your liking.
DeleteYour chestnut soup sounds delicious, Rosemary, and the botanical artwork at the top of the post illustrates the tree so well. I have eaten roasted chestnuts, but never chestnut soup. They are not common here at all, but perhaps I should look for the packaged ones in a specialty store.
ReplyDeleteDear Lorrie - our friend Gina has said that she has found some on Amazon - I understand that sweet chestnuts trees suffered from a blight in the States at the beginning of the 20th century. Maybe Canada suffered from it too. The world’s oldest known chestnut tree grows on Mount Etna in Sicily and has a circumference of 190 feet. It is said to be between 2,000 and 4,000 years old.
DeleteI love chestnuts, but I've never eaten in soup. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteGive it a go Maria, I am sure that you would enjoy it too. Everyone appears to love chestnuts.
DeleteOh what a lovely soup! I love chestnuts :) Thanks for sharing, I will try it...
ReplyDeleteHave a happy weekend and take care!
Titti
Hope that you enjoy Titti - sweet chestnuts have a very special flavour that seems to be particular popular with everyone.
DeleteIt's not often I actually try the recipes I see in blogland, but as a fan of chestnuts, this recipe is going on my list! thank you so much , it looks delicious, healthy and best of all easy! Happy New Year if I haven't said it before.
ReplyDeleteI never thought of making a soup with chestnuts , but I love soups and this one sounds delicious and very nutritious .
ReplyDeleteYou are very fortunate as the woods in Italy always appear to be laiden with Sweet Chestnuts. Whenever we have travelled to Italy during the Autumn then we have always returned home with some.
DeleteDear Rosemary, it is still time to wish you a Happy New Year.
ReplyDeleteIt is the first time I see a recipe for sweet chestnuts as a soup - it sounds lovely. In Portugal I ate roasted chestnuts, but in Germany they are not very common. Sometimes I see a tree and the chestnuts lying on the ground. I use them to stuff turkey.
Dear Britta - they make a delicious and very substantial soup - a meal in a bowl. As you like chestnuts you would enjoy this soup.
DeleteLet's hope that this really is a good and Happy New Year for us all.
Happy New Year! bit late but well meant. This soup looks delicious xx
ReplyDeleteIt's a lovely soup - Happy New Year to you and yours too.
DeleteSounds nice
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