Low-sugar chestnut cream

This recipe is dedicated to my mum who taught me when I was a kid that the best dessert ever is “Crème de marrons à la petite cuillère” (chestnut cream à la teaspoon).

The recipe here is not for the super sweet chestnut cream that you can buy in store, but a healthier low-sugar version. It is great with a yogurt, a slice of toasted bread – and also eaten à la petite cuillère!

The quantities here makes a small glass container (about 1 cup, but I am not sure). It is ready in 1 hour 45 minutes or so.

Ingredients

• 2 cups of fresh chestnuts (about 400g)
• Water
• 4 tablespoons of Demerara sugar (more to taste)
• ½ vanilla pod, sliced into two halves

Preparation

To cook the fresh chestnuts: rinse the chestnuts. Make a cross with a sharp-pointed knife on the flat side. In a large saucepan, cook them in boiling water for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Using a slotted spoon, strain 2 chestnuts at a time out of the hot water – leave the other ones in it.

With the point of the knife, peel the outer skin and the inner skin. Without this first step of boiling the chestnuts, it is very difficult to remove the inner skin. Also, peeling the chestnuts is a very time-consuming operation – it took me over 1 hour to peel 800g, about 4 cups (!).

When all the chestnuts are peeled, boil them covered over medium-high heat for about 30 minutes, until they are cooked through and when it is possible to crush them. Add more water along the way if needed. Strain them.

Transfer the chestnuts to a food processor and blend them into a powdery purée. Set aside.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm ¾ cup of water and the sugar, until the sugar is dissolved. Stir in the chestnut purée. Add the vanilla pod. Stirring often, simmer covered (but leave a small gap for the steam) for 20 minutes for the purée to harden. Remove the vanilla pod. Transfer the chestnut cream to a glass container and let it cool. Keep it closed in the fridge, and eat within two days.