Salted chestnuts: the delicious recipe for preparing them fried and baked

THE salted chestnuts I am a quick and tasty bitesperfect to serve for the buffet ohCarnival aperitifon the occasion of THURSDAY or of Mardi Gras: there rustic and gourmet version of classic chestnuts, from which they differ in the use of parmesan instead of sugar and white wine instead of liqueur. They are soft and delicious balls, which literally melt in your mouth, as excellent as save dinner of the last, perhaps accompanied by cheeses, charcuterie and sauces.

Soft in the center and thin and crispy on the outside, they are prepared in no time: form a loaf with flour, egg, parmesan, white wine, salt, yeast for the savory pies, butter and, if you want to get a more decisive flavor, add spices like paprika and curry or herbs like rosemary and chives. If you want even more tender chestnuts, you can omit the butter and add 200 grams of ricotta to the dough. Let the bread rest for ten minutes: this step will make it more elastic and promote its softness. Finally, let’s create our balls and choose whether fry them in hot oilaccording to tradition, or alternatively bake them in the oven.

In our recipe we stuffed them with an enveloping Cream Of Pumpkin but, if you prefer, you can also add a piece of provolone oh scamorza before frying them, for a simplified result and melting under the tooth, able to conquer young and old.

Find out how to make salted, fried and baked carnival chestnuts, following our step-by-step procedure, and also try other rustic Carnival recipes like fragrant salty chatter and salty mileage.

With the doses indicated, you will move 30 ladies. For perfect frying, use thepeanut oil: characterized by a smoke point above 200°C, it is one of the oils which least alter the taste of food. If you wish, you can replace the butter with 30 grams of more delicate seed oil. For the chestnuts, we use yeast for savory pies, the rustic equivalent of yeast for desserts, easily available in sachets.

How to prepare salted chestnuts

To prepare the salted chestnuts, start by pouring the flour into a bowl. Then, mix the grated parmesan, a pinch of salt and the baking powder 1.

Create a space in the center to form the classic fountain, and add the slightly softened cubes of butter. Add the eggs and start kneading 2, starting from the center and mixing the ingredients well. If you want even softer salted chestnuts, replace the butter with 200 grams of ricotta.

Pour in the white wine and work well with your hands until you get a homogeneous mixture. Transfer the dough to a work surface and form a soft, smooth dough 3. Cover and leave to rest for 10 minutes: this way the dough will relax and become even more frothy during cooking.

After the rest time, form several small balls of 13-14 grams each 4. Arrange them on a plate and set them aside.

In the meantime, dedicate yourself to the filling: clean the pumpkin and cut it into cubes. Then put it in a pan with a drizzle of oil and let it brown for a few minutes. Season with salt and pepper, adding 1/2 glass of water to speed up cooking. Cook until the bottom is dry 5.

Once ready, mix the still hot pumpkin with the grated pecorino and add the mascarpone 6, mixing well. Let the pumpkin cream cool in the refrigerator for a few minutes, then transfer it to a pocket bag with a syringe tip. While the filling cools in the refrigerator, devote yourself to cooking the chestnuts. If you want to get a stringy heart, just add a piece of scamorza or provola to the dough, then close and form the balls.

Prepare a pan or wok with plenty of seed oil and wait for it to reach the right temperature, around 170°C. During this phase, equip yourself with a cooking thermometer or use one of the alternative methods to monitor the temperature of the oil. Keep the oil temperature constant, frying a maximum of 5-6 pomfrets at a time, turning them several times until golden brown. Gradually drain the chestnuts and place them on a sheet of paper towel to remove excess oil. 7.

Leave them to cool, then make a small hole in each castagnola and fill it with the pumpkin cream 8.

The salted chestnuts are ready to be tasted in delicious bites, to serve as an appetizer or as a starter for the Mardi Gras menu 9.

How to prepare salted baked chestnuts

Once the chestnuts have formed, you can also bake them in the oven, for a lighter and just as soft result. Preheat the oven to 180°C in static mode. Arrange the damselfish on the parchment paper, drizzle them with olive oil and cook for 15/20 minutes. Once ready, wait for them to cool and stuff them as desired.

Variation: salted chestnuts with ricotta

Prepare the salted chestnuts even softer and lighteryou can omit the butter, add only 20 grams of oil and mix 200 grams of cottage cheese or, alternatively, the same amount of Greek yogurt. To make them, you can also follow our recipe for damselfish with sweet ricotta, using parmesan instead of sugar and adding white wine and salt.

Advice

For the chestnut paste, instead of white wine, you can add Brandy oh another liquor to taste. For a more pronounced taste, you can replace the parmesan with a seasoned pecorino. You can also enrich the dough with chopped pitted olives, dried tomatoes or diced ham.

Is the Cream Of Pumpkin turns out to be too liquid, add a little cheese to adjust its consistency. You can also flavor it with other types of cheese: we also suggest trying the version with castelmagnosemi-hard cheese with a strong and characteristic taste.

storage

Cooked salted chestnuts are stored in fridge by 2/3 daystightly closed in an airtight container. At the time of consumption, reheat them slightly in the microwave before serving. Pan-fried salted chestnuts, on the other hand, are ideal to eat warm, shortly after cooking. If you really have leftovers, you can put them away in the refrigeratorcovered with a transparent film, to A day at most.