Chestnuts in the Fall

This happened a couple weekends ago. I was sure I made a post about the castagne, but it's lost! It was chestnut season and the woods next to Stef's home was full of chestnuts that had fallen from the trees. We went out for an hour each on Saturday and Sunday and just picked up a bunch. Two hours and we had about 11kg (~22 lbs) of chestnuts, ready to pass out to our colleagues at work the next day.

Well, not so quick. In order to preserve chestnuts to eat in the next days, they must be made perfectly dry after they come out of their husk. Any maggots that are inside will come out and not spoil the rest. We had to inspect each one for holes before putting them in bags.

What can you do with these chestnuts? We cut slits into each one and roasted them on top of the wood stove in the kitchen. You can also cook it over an open fire using a special pan that has holes in it. Or you can boil them in water. According to his mother, back in the day, it was just chestnuts and water for dinner.