Roasted chestnuts

Roasted chestnuts just scream "holiday"! There's even a Christmas song that starts with "chestnuts roasting on an open fire", isn't there? Where I used to live, there were street vendors who would roast them and sell them fresh. Unfortunately, street vendors are not typically found here in a North America city, even those with the most elaborate Chinatowns. But what to do if we are craving chestnuts? By "we", I mean "I". No matter, we can roast these ourselves can't we? This week, I bought some raw chestnuts and I'm determined to make this festive snack. 

This would not be my first attempt to roast chestnuts. In the past I somehow always did it wrong. It's the worst feeling, when the smell of warm chestnuts is in the air and I'm hovering the stove waiting to get my hands on some piping hot sweet treats.. and only to find all the inner furry lining keeps on getting stuck on these nuts. Well maybe it's one weird nut, I tell myself. until the second, third.. One's patience is not infinite.. I have to tell you, it's the most infuriating experience. I'm pretty certain I have eaten enough fur with the nuts over the years. (this is the perfect spot to insert furry nuts jokes so I just want to acknowledge this) inside, I was sobbing. It really ruins it! So this time I used my trusty little google search and found me a good (turned out to be GREAT!) method for chestnut roasting. Hear me out..

What you need:

- 1/2 lb (or any amount of chestnut enough for one to consume in one sitting) raw chestnuts. I like fresh roasted nuts, so don't do too much all at once - cold chestnuts are not as good. Also, these will dry out over time, so just make a fresh batch everytime.

- 3-4 cups of water

Recipe:

- wash the chestnuts roughly to get rid of superficial dirt. 

- Use a sharp paring knife and pierce the nuts - you want to cut a slit so the steam will be able to escape. Be very very very carefully when doing this. I will say this again: WATCH YO FINGERS! Some chestnuts are half spheres so you can place it nicely on the cutting board without it rolling off the table. Others are a complete globe so try not to stab your hand, maybe use a dish towel to be safe.

- Pour all the chestnuts in a pot, will 3-4 cups of cold water (just ensure the water at least covers all the chestnuts in the pot, exact amount does not need to be exact)

- Boil the chestnuts in cold water, stop as soon the water starts to boil. This step will help to lift the furry skin off the chestnut and allows the chestnuts to retain some liquid, which would be great for steaming.

- Pour out the water, scoop out the chestnuts and place them on a baking tray. 425 F for about 15-20 min. the high temp allows the nut and shell to separate, check your chestnuts for doneness at 15 min mark, leave it in oven for a few min longer if needed (for larger chestnuts or if there's too many on the pan)

- once deemed done, take the tray out and let it cool for 10 min. I was very tempted to just grab it and eat but you will burn your hand. Just wait!

These chestnuts turned out great! not only the fruits were delicious, shells easy to peel, and the furry inner skin completely separate from the nuts! Go figure! I am so glad this method worked like magic. In fact, this will be the only method I will ever use when roasting chestnuts. 

I got the idea from the below site so let's please give them some credit. https://www.shelovesbiscotti.com/5-easy-steps-for-oven-roasted-chestnuts/

I was definitely skeptical, but very pleasantly surprised!! I have to show you here look the perfect little fur-less nut! Thinking of doing this over the holidays? Roasted chestnuts on an open fir--heated oven anyone? Cuz I'm about to do it again like, tomorrow.