The encyclopædia of practical cookery

(2) Peel the outer skin off some large Chestnuts, and immerse them in boiling water for a few minutes until the second skin can be easily removed ; then lay them flat at the bottom of a large copper sugar-boiler, cover them with syrup at 16deg. Fahr., and let them simmer gently for twenty minutes. When done, strain the syrup off through a conical strainer, reduce it to 30deg. Fahr., put the Chestnuts back in it, and press them through a hair sieve into a compote dish. The Chestnuts will fall like vermicelli. Croquenbouche of Chestnuts. — Coat about sixty peeled Chestnuts with caramel sugar, and stick them on the outside of a mould, using sugar boiled to the crack to stick them together. Ornament the Croquenbouche when lifted off its mould and placed on the dish with caramel fruit-paste rings and green angelica, or with different sorts of liqueur bonbons. Croquettes of Chestnuts. — There are several modes of preparing these little delicacies, but none have been found to supersede the receipt given by Ude. Take fifty good Chestnuts and put them in a hot oven, having scored each of them with the point of a knife, to save them the trouble of bursting. When well roasted, clean them, and put half (taking care to choose those that have most colour) into the mortar, with 3oz. of butter and 1 table-spoonful of cream, and well pound them ; rub this paste through a hair sieve, then mix with it the same quantity of butter as before, a pinch of salt, 3oz. of sugar, and 1/2 pint of cream, and put the whole over the fire in a stewpan to dry. When it has acquired a little consistence, add to it six yolks of eggs and any flavour desired, whether lemon, vanilla, citron, or coffee. Let this paste go to the fire again after the yolks of the eggs are added, and stir it well with a wooden spoon till it is rather firm. Butter a dish, and spread the paste over equally with a knife ; cover 2 K uces, &c., referred to, see under their special heads. Chestnuts — continued. it with a sheet of buttered paper, and let it cool. When cold, cut it with a knife. Take half of a Chestnut, and make the paste into the shape of a big Chestnut ; put some crumbs of bread over the croquettes, • then dip them into the yolks and whites of three eggs beaten up with a little salt, and into the breadcrumbs again. Give them a good shape, fry them of a nice colour, and serve them as a sweet dish. If dipped into eggs only, without crumbs, they are more delicate. Dust fine sugar over them after they are fried. Devilled Chestnuts. — Put 1 lb. or so of large Chestnuts into a saucepan of salted water, and parboil them ; then plunge them into cold water, and with a sharp knife scrape off the skins, after removing the outer shells. Dry them, put them into a frying-pan with butter, and fry, tossing and shaking them about in the pan over the fire until they become of a golden colour, and sprinkling with salt mixed with double its quantity of cayenne. Take them out when done, and serve hot or cold, as desired.