I am round and small
with a spiny robe
the flour is very sweet
I come down from the mountain and my name is ……..
What a precious treasure is chestnut. A fruit that is not a fruit. A nut that is not a nut. Rich in starch, it can be dried and then ground to obtain a flour that has been the main ingredient of nutritious and satisfying dishes for the inhabitants of the mid-mountain. Dishes that combined mushrooms and chestnuts – which ripen and are harvested in the same period – are still among the specialties of places such as Garfagnana, Mugello, the Pistoiese mountains, Lunigiana, just to talk about Tuscany.
The chestnut is also widespread in the Pre-Alps, along the entire Apennine coast up to Calabria, on the Islands. The chestnut is “transversal”, it crosses the whole peninsula giving us delights everywhere.
With the flour you can make desserts of any consistency: the “corollo”, the crepes and the necci, the cream, the pudding, the castagnaccio … the marron glacé … but also savory preparations: fresh pasta, gnocchi, “polentina” to accompany – and balance – intense flavored sauces, such as with game, meats and mountain cheeses.
Chestnuts are good roasted, caldarroste, or boiled, ballotte.
You can also cook them in the microwave: if you have a small silicone container (preferably with its lid), the chestnuts will cook in an inch of water and in 2 minutes.
Prepared in this way they can be the “counterpoint” of soups with artichokes, mushrooms, beans, black cabbage; or the compendium of succulent roasts. In addition to a healthy snack
They are the excuse for a “picnic”, equipped with cane and wicker basket; they are the protagonists of numerous festivals.
Here is a recipe for a day of celebration:
TAGLIATELLE OF CHESTNUT FLOUR, ARTICHOHES, SCAMPIS AND GINGER
Ingredients for 4
200 gr white flour type 0
100 gr chestnut flour
10 gr cocoa
3 eggs
salt
Coarse salt (for boiling water)
Mix the flours and cocoa. Make a fountain on the table and break the eggs inside. Sprinkle a pinch of salt. Start beating with a fork then work the dough until it is elastic. Let it rest before spreading it out and cutting the tagliatelle.
For the sauce:
3-4 tender artichokes
12 medium scampis (langoustines – prawns)
80 gr extra virgin olive oil
10/15 gr fresh ginger
1 garlic clove
1/2 glass dry white wine
salt
Lemon juice to mix in the water to soak artichokes
Clean the artichokes by removing the hard outer leaves. Cut them in half and remove the fluff inside. Slice them thinly lengthwise. Dip them in lemon water to prevent oxidation. Cook them in a pan with garlic, olive oil, salt and a little water. Keep aside.
Using scissors, open the prawns in half (only at the top is enough). Remove the black wire. Put them in a pan in one layer, without overlapping them, with the remaining olive oil, wine, grated ginger, salt. Cover with the lid. Cook for 2-3 minutes until they change color. Remove from heat. Take the scampi out of the pan and keep them warm aside.
Put the artichokes in the pan of the scampi.
Bring a pot of water to a boil and add salt. Cook the noodles until they float, take them out and toss in the sauce. Mix, being careful not to break the prawns (place them on the side of the pan).
Plate the pasta, placing three scampis on each dish.
Marcella Ansaldo