The encyclopædia of practical cookery

Chestnut Bonbons. — Peel the outer skin off forty Chestnuts, put them in a 2qt. stewpan with 3 pints of water, and stand them on the fire until hot ; then take the Chestnuts out and peel off the second skin. When they are quite clean, put them in a large copper boiler, so that all the Chestnuts may lay flat at the bottom, cover them with syrup at 16deg., stand the boiler on the fire, and let them simmer gently for twenty minutes. Drain the Chestnuts, strain the syrup, and reduce it to 30deg. Put the Chestnuts back in the reduced syrup ; then press them through a hair sieve. Shape this puree into Chestnuts, stick a wooden splint in each, and put them by until they are dry. Glaze them with chocolate icing, and dry in the hot closet. Chestnut Cakes. — (1) Put a hundred or so of Chestnuts on a fine gridiron over a clear fire, and cook them until the skins will easily come off. Skin them, put them into a For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, &c. , referred to, see under their special heads. Chestnuts — continued. mortar with 2oz. or 3oz. of butter and a little well-whipped cream, and pound well ; then rub the mass through a fine sieve, taking care that the puree is not too wet. When all has been rubbed through, put it into a basin and mix in half its weight in sifted crushed loaf sugar, very slightly flavoured with vanilla. Form the mixture into small cakes, putting them on a well-buttered baking-sheet, make a slight incision on the top of each, brush them over with yolk of egg, and bake them to a good colour in a hot oven. When done, take them off the baking- sheet, and serve. (2) Boil lib. of Chestnuts until soft, peel them, removing both skins, put them in a mortar, and pound until quite smooth. Mix with this mass 4oz. of sugar, 4oz. of flour, and four well-beaten eggs, working the mixture into a smooth paste ; put this on a floured paste-board, roll it out rather thin, and cut it into a variety of small fancy shapes. Butter a baking-sheet, lay the cakes on it, brush them over with a paste-brush dipped in beaten egg, and bake them in a slow oven. When the cakes are cooked, leave them until cold before packing them in biscuit-tins. (3) Put lib. of roasted Chestnuts into a mortar and pound them to a pulp, adding gradually the yolks of four eggs. Sift 12oz. of flour on to a board, make a bay, and work in 6oz. of finely-crushed loaf sugar, 12oz. of butter, two eggs, the Chestnut pulp, and Joz. of salt. Form this into a cake about 6in. in diameter, put it on a well-buttered baking-sheet, surrounding' it with paper, and bake for two-hours-and-a-half in a very moderate oven. Chestnut Cream. — (1) Peel the dark skins off twenty Chestnuts, parboil them, and rub the light skins off ; then pound them in a mortar, and pass them through a sieve. Dilute lloz. of gelatine in 1 pint of milk, blanch and bruise six sweet almonds, and add, with the thin rind of half a lemon and a little sugar ; put these in a stewpan, and when the milk comes to the boil move to one side until it is cool ; then strain it, and mix with the Chestnut purde. When it is worked smooth add 1 wineglassful of dry curatjoa and 5 pint of whipped cream, pour it into a mould, and stand it on ice. Whip some more cream and sugar to a froth, and when the Chestnut cream is set, turn it out, and put the whipped cream round it.