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These recipes
come from Stefano Marchi, host and owner of La Palazzina, an Agriturismo
accommodation in Castelnuovo di Garfagnana, Italy, that we recommend
highly. The recipes represent dishes from the kitchens of Garfagnana
and in
particular from those that are a part of the chestnut industry in
Tuscany. If you encounter problems with recipes please let me
know. We're dealing with language translation as well as measurement
equivalents and errors are bound to happen. Where we've had
particular success with a recipe you'll find our notes highlighted. |
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Tuscan Appetizers and Soups | ||||||
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TARTINE
AL FORMAGGIO (Cheese Canapes) |
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| Metric 100 g 100 g 100 g 100 g 1 50 g 150 g |
US 3/4 C wheat flour 3/4 C chestnut flour 2 C grated parmesan cheese 1/4 lb butter 1 egg 3/8 C cream 1 1/8 C grated Emmenthal cheese salt pepper |
Mix
the two flours and the parmesan cheese together. Add the melted
(not hot) butter, the cream and the beaten egg a little at a
time. Salt and pepper to taste. Make a dough with your
hands and knead to give it an even consistency. You may need to
add a bit of water. Roll it out on a lightly floured board to
about 1/4" thickness with a 2 1/2" cookie cutter.
Place on baking tin. Bake at about 400o F (200o
C) until they become a golden biscuit color.
An interesting hors d'oeuvre. Our guests liked it.
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| Metric 60 g 80 g 3.5 dl 2 1 tbsp 400 g 200 g 4 tbsp |
US 3/8 C + 1 tbsp chestnut flour 2/3 C wheat flour 3/4 C milk 2 eggs 1 tbsp butter 1 3/4 C white sauce 1 1/2 C ricotta cheese nutmeg 4 tbsp grated parmesan cheese |
Beat the eggs in a bowl,
add the two mixed flours, and 1 tbsp butter. Stir well and then
mix in the melted butter and 1/2 C of the milk. Cover it with a
clean linen and let it rest for 10 minutes.
Butter a non-stick frying pan and drop in a little ladleful of batter. It should spread over the bottom of the pan as far as possible to obtain a thin layer. When it has cooked on one side, turn it over and cook on the other side. Carry on the same way until the batter has been used up. Put half of the white sauce in a bowl, add 1 tbsp of grated parmesan cheese, 2 tbsp of ricotta cheese. Spread the mixture on each pancake, then close them with a blade of spring onion grass as if they were little bags. Arrange them on a buttered baking tin. Combine the remaining white sauce with the remaining milk, pepper, nutmeg and the remaining grated parmesan cheese. Sprinkle the little bags with the sauce and cook in a hot oven at 400o F for 20 minutes. |
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| Metric 100 g 200 g 200 g 1 |
US 3/4 C flour 1 1/2 C chestnut flour 1 1/2 C boiled mashed potatoes milk as necessary 1 egg salt pepper pesto or ragout sauce |
Mix the 2 flours, the
mashed potatoes, the egg, salt and pepper to taste and enough milk to
obtain a smooth and thick dough. Divide it up into little pieces
each about the size of a large pea. Roll these pieces between
your hands to make little sticks and then wind these round a knitting
needle in a spiral to give them a fusilli shape.
Cook in plenty of salted water. Drain well and dress with pesto or with a good hot ragout and serve
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Metric For pasta: 150 g 150 g 1 tbsp 1 50 g For filling: 3 1 200 g 150 g 1-2 tbsp For dressing: 200 g 40 g |
US 1 1/8 C chestnut flour 1 1/8 C wheat flour 1 tbsp oil 1 egg 3/8 C milk salt 3 green onions 1 garlic clove 5 oz. frozen spinach thawed 6 oz. ricotta cheese 1-2 tbsp butter salt and pepper 7 oz butter 1/4 C parmesan cheese |
Make the dough combining
all the pasta ingredients. Knead it well until the pasta dough
is of an elastic consistency. Mince the onion and garlic rather
finely; brown them in boiling butter and then add chopped
spinach. Let the spinach absorb the flavors; combine it with
ricotta cheese, a pinch of salt and pepper and stir from time to time
to obtain an even mixture.
Roll out a thin layer of pasta dough and cut into strips about 3" wide. Place small heaps of the filling mixture on the dough in a line. Fold a strip of dough over the top and press it down well around the sides of the filling. Now cut out the ravioli with a pastry wheel in semicircular shapes, 2 1/2" in diameter. Boil in salted water, drain well, add very hot butter and grated cheese. Tasty but forming the raviolis was a bit tricky.
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Metric 200 g 100 g 100 g 1 tbsp 4-6 4-6 tsp |
US 1 1/2 C cornstarch 3/4 C cornmeal 3/4 C chestnut flour 1 tbsp cream 4-6 little ladles of meat ragout 4-6 tsp grated parmesan salt and pepper |
GLUTEN FREE
Combine the 2 corn flours. Add the chestnut flour, salt and pepper. Put 4 C lightly salted water to heat; bring it to a boil. Pour in the flours. Cook and stir all the time as for a normal polenta. If necessary add hot water in order to obtain a blended and smooth mixture. Dress it rapidly with butter and keep on stirring. Pour it in little bowls and dress with hot meat ragout. Strew on top with pepper and grated parmesan cheese. |
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Metric 250 g 75 g 1 tbsp 1 5 1 400 g |
US 1 7/8 C chestnut flour 1/4 C + 1 tbsp butter 1 tbsp sugar 1 pkt castor sugar with vanilla flavour 5 eggs 1 lemon 13 oz peanut oil |
GLUTEN FREE Bring 1 cup of water to the boil. Add butter. Then take the pan out of the heat, pour in the flour and stir quickly to obtain a smooth batter and allow to rest. When the batter is cold add eggs, one at a time, sugar, grated lemon zest. Heat the oil up, not too much. Make little fritters by frying tablespoonfuls of mixture in the oil in a frying pan. Let them swell and become a golden colour. Arrange on a serving plate and dust with icing sugar and cinnamon. |
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| Metric For pasta: 150 g 150 g 2 For sauce: 200 g 200 g 1 1 dl 1 |
US 1 1/8 C chestnut flour 1 1/8 C wheat flour 2 eggs salt 7 oz porcini mushrooms 7 oz pumpkin pulp 1 shallot parsley 3.4 oz extra virgin olive oil 1 little ladle beef stock salt and pepper |
Put
the 2 kinds of flour together on a pastry board. Put the two
eggs and a pinch of salt in the middle. Work it all together
with your hands until the dough is soft and elastic. Wrap it in
plastic wrap and let it rest for about 30 minutes. Roll the
dough out and cut it into strips about 3/4" wide and 2 inches
long. Place them on the floured pastry board and let them dry. Slice the mushrooms. Mince the shallot and brown in a non-stick frying pan with 3 tbsp oil. Add pumpkin. Continue stirring with a wooden spoon. Let it flavour with a pinch of salt and pepper. Combine with the pumpkin and strew with washed and minced parsley. Meanwhile, cook the pasta in plenty of boiling salted water. Drain when cooked al dente and serve with the hot porcini and pumpkin sauce. |
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| Metric 350 g 200 g 1 1 C |
US 2 5/8 C chestnut flour 1 1/2 C wheat flour 1 egg 1 C pesto water and salt as necessary |
Mix together the 2 flours. Add 1 lightly beaten egg and a pinch of salt. Make the dough using enough water to give it a soft but solid consistency, cover and let it rest for some minutes. Make little roll shapes out of the dough. Cut these up into little pieces of about 3/4" in diameter. Dust with flour and let them rest. Very carefully make a small indentation in each one with your thumb to obtain shell shaped pieces. Cook them in plenty of salted water. Strain and dress with pesto. | |||||
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LASAGNETTE
DI CASTAGNE CON TROTA E ASPARAGI MANTECATI ALLA RICOTTA |
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| Metric 2 160 g 120 g 160 g 120 g 1 |
US 2 trout fillets 1 1/8 c + 1 tbsp cooked spelt 7/8 C asparagus 6 oz chestnut & eggs ..pasta 7/8 C ricotta cheese fish soup as necessary 1 garlic clove olive oil white wine white pepper salt parsley red pepper hot paprika butter garlic |
Make
the pasta. Cut it into parsley shape sheets.
Clean and cut the trout
into little cubes. Brown a garlic clove with oil and
butter. Brown the red pepper, the trout and the asparagus
after. Pour in the white wine and let it evaporate. Add
salt and pepper, paprika, minced parsley and spelt. Pour in the
fish soup and the ricotta cheese. Boil the pasta. Arrange
one layer of pasta on a plate. Put some stuffing on top and
cover with other pasta. Carry on the same way until the stuffing
has been used up. Then dust with parsley, pepper and garnish
with red pepper. Unique and delicious.
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| Metric 300 g 300 g 1 C 1 |
US 2 1/4 C chestnut flour 2 1/4 C wheat flour 1 C meat ragout 1 C dry white wine milk water grated parmesan cheese |
Mix the 2 flours on a pastry board and put wine, water as necessary and a pinch of salt in the middle. Work it all together with your hands to make a rather firm, well mixed dough. Cover it with a clean linen and let it rest for 10 minutes. Roll it out with the rolling pin into a thin layer. Dust it with some wheat flour, roll it up on itself and cut it into fine sticks. Boil this pasta in plenty of boiling milk, drain it well and dress with the meat ragout and grated parmesan cheese. | |||||
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CREMA
CON FAVE E CARDI |
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Metric 150 g 120 g 2 2 1 200 g 2 1/2 |
US 1 1/8 C skinned broad beans 1 C chestnut flour 1 bay leaves celery 2 carrots 1 onion 7 oz. clean thistle wheat flour 2 garlic cloves 1/2 lemon meat stock butter croutons salt |
Boil the broad beans (shortly drenched) in pure water with bay leaves and minced carrots, celery and onion. Let them cook for 45 minutes. Drain and pour into a casserole with the chestnut flour. Separately, boil the thistle in salted water with 2 slices of lemon; cut them into little cubes. Flour and brown them in the butter with minced onion. When finished, add this mixture to the chestnut and bean cream. Add enough stock, heat up and serve with toasted croutons. | |||||
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Metric 150 g 100 g 2 tbsp 1 1 2 120 g 1 1/4 l 2 tbsp |
US 1 1/8 C pearl barley 3.5 oz bacon 2 tbsp oil 1 onion 1 garlic clove 2 carrots 1 C chestnut flour 40 oz. meat stock 2 tbsp grated pecorino cheese salt pepper |
Mince and brown the bacon with oil in a casserole. At this point, add carrots and onion flakes. Let them brown for some minutes. Then pour in the meat stock. Make it boil and add the barley. Cover and cook for 1 hour. Pour in the chestnut flour with salt. Stir and keep on cooking but let it not reduce. If that happens, add some hot water or stock. When it has finished cooking, strew on top with pepper and grated cheese. Then serve. | |||||
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PESCE
PERSCICO CON SALSA DI CASTAGNE |
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Metric 2 kg 4 1/2 100 g 1 |
US 4 lb sea-rock perch 4 garlic cloves 1/2 C extra virgin olive oil 3/4 C chestnut flour 1 C milk salt pepper |
GLUTEN
FREE Wash, scale and take out viscera from the fish. Rub it inside and outside with salt and pepper. Spread the abdominal cavity with minced garlic and parsley. Oil the fish, wrap it in an aluminum rectangle paper and cook it in the oven for 45 minutes. Dissolve the chestnut flour with water and milk, add salt, pepper and 1 tbsp. oil. Heat up the mixture until it has reduced to a fluid cream. Use this cream to dress the fish pieces that should have been arranged on individual plates, and serve
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PESCE
SPATOLA IN SALSA ORIENTALE |
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Metric 1 kg 1/2 glass 2 200 g 2 |
US 2 lbs paddle fish 1/2 C olive oil 2 big onions 1 1/2 C chestnut flour 2 lemons (juice from) butter salt pepper |
GLUTEN
FREE Clean the fish. Take its head, tail and viscera off. Cut it into pieces (about 6" each) and take out the bone. Divide each piece of fish into two parts. Oil them, put them in an oiled baking tin and roast in a pre-heated oven for 15 minutes at 400o F. Mince and fry the onions in a little butter. Then strew them on the fish pieces. Dissolve the chestnut flour with the lemon juice and the same quantity of water in order to obtain a mixture of cream consistency. Drop it on the onions and cook in oven for 15 minutes at 350o F. |
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Metric 1.5 l 1 kg |
US 6 C lightly salted water 2 lbs sieved chestnut flour |
GLUTEN
FREE Bring the water to a boil, preferably using a cauldron. Pour in the sieved chestnut flour, stirring all the time with a wooden spoon to avoid clumps forming. Continue cooking over a low heat for about 45 minutes. The polenta is done when it comes away in a mass from the sides of the pan. At this stage tip it out on to a wooden board and cut it into slices. |
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Metric 1 kg per person |
US 2 lbs pork bones per person |
GLUTEN
FREE Ask your trusty butcher for about 2 lbs pork bones per person of pork bones from steaks, breast and little trotters. All these bones should be fleshy enough. Pickle them for some hours with rosemary leaves, a pinch of cinnamon and pepper. Then take out the bones and dust them with salt. Arrange the bones in layers at the bottom of a large bowl. Dust each layer with plenty of salt. Let them rest for 10 days in a fresh and dry place. After 10 days, wash the bones with running water and cook them in plenty of water. When cooked, serve with hot polenta. |
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Metric 200 g 300 g 400 g |
US 7 oz thick bacon 11 oz blood sausage sliced 14 oz sausage cubed 1 C vinegar |
GLUTEN
FREE Fry each kind of meat in separate pans. Use some oil only to fry the biroldo. When they are brown enough, pour them in a large pan and add the vinegar. Let the liquid reduce. Then take out of the heat, cover with a lid and let soften for one minute. Serve very hot. |
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Metric 500 g 1 l 1 |
US 3 3/4 C chestnut flour 34 oz water 1 pinch salt |
GLUTEN
FREE Beat all the ingredients to obtain a soft batter. Let it rest for 1 hour. Put seeds oil or lard in a frying pan. Make little fritters by frying tablespoons full of the batter in the oil, which should be very hot but not boiling. Serve them hot with ricotta cheese. |
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| Make a batter with the chestnut flour as for the chestnut fritters but thicker. Heat up two "testi" (moulds of the same depth and width as a plate). Pour 2-3 tbsp of batter in one of them. Cover it with the second testo. Press them using a piece of wood in order to spread well the inside mixture. Make this operation during 1-2 minutes. Meanwhile turn the testi upside down t least twide. When the neccio is cooked, roll it up and fill it with ricotta cheese. | |||||||
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Metric For the cake: 4 100 g 60 g 1/2 pkt 100 g For the cream: 350 cl 3 100 g 35 g For the syrup: 1 100g |
US 4 eggs 3/4 C wheat flour 1/2 C chestnut flour 1 tsp baking powder 3/4 C sugar 12 oz. milk 3 eggs 3/4 C sugar 1/4 C wheat flour orange zest orange juice cognac as necessary 1 clove water as necessary cinnamon 3/4 C sugar 1/8 C fresh chestnuts |
Sponge
Cake Preparation: Whip the eggs with sugar to obtain a light and frothy mixture. Combine carefully the two sieved flours with the baking powder and mix with the eggs and sugar. Bake the mixture in a pre-heated oven to 350o F for 5-10 minutes, then 300o F until done (40 minutes). Cream Preparation: Syrup Preparation:
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Metric For coupelles 100 g 100 g 100 g 150 g For the mousse 600 g 100 g 100 g 150 g 1/2 glassful 1/2 glassful |
US 3/4 C castor sugar 3/4 C wheat flour 7 tbsp butter 3/4 C egg white 1/2 tsp vanilla 21 oz chestnuts in shell 3.5 oz dark chocolate 3.5 oz butter 1 1/8 C castor sugar 1/2 C milk 1/4 C liqueur 1/8 C chopped walnuts |
Preparation
of the coupelles: Soften the butter. Add the castor sugar, vanilla and the egg whites a little at a time. Pour in the flour and make a soft dough. Cover the base of a buttered baking tin with the dough. Cook in the oven at 400o F until the edges become of a golden biscuit colour. While the dough is still soft, cut it into round shapes by using an upside-down glass. Preparation of the mousse: Boil the chestnuts, peel and process in a food processor. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler with the butter and sugar and dissolve everything with milk. Pour the chestnut puree into a bowl. Add the melted ingredients and moist with some milk and liqueur if necessary Pour the batter into the coupelles. Garnish with chopped walnuts. |
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Metric 400 g 500 g 30 g |
US 1 1/2 C chestnut flour 1 1/8 C water 1/8 C chopped walnuts zest of 1 orange rosemary oil salt |
GLUTEN
FREE Make a dough with flour, water and salt. Knead (mix) it well. Place a dough layer (1/2" thick) in a baking tin. Moist its surface with some oil. Dust it with walnuts, pieces of rosemary and the orange zest. Bake in oven at 375o F for 40 minutes. If you're looking for a unique dessert to serve your guests this one fills the bill. You might try topping it with ricotta cheese as they sometimes do in Italy, or with whipped cream. You might also try adding 1/4 C of miniature chocolate chips to the dough.
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MANTOVANA DI NECCIO CON
YOGURT (Neccio Mantovana with Yogurt) |
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Metric For the cake 150 g 6 200 g 300 g 150 g 30 g For the yogurt cream 100 g 100 g 100 g 200 g |
US 1 1/8 C chestnut flour 6 eggs 7 oz margarine or butter 2 1/4 C sugar 1 1/8 C wheat flour 1 oz cocoa 3/4 C cream 3/4 C sugar 3/4 C ricotta cheese 7 oz light yogurt |
Whip
6 egg yolks together with margarine and 1 7/8 C sugar. Sieve the
two flours and combine with the two previously done doughs and
cocoa. Butter and flour two baking tins measuring 10"
in diameter. Pour in the mixture and cook in the oven at 325o F
for 45 minutes. When cooked, let them rest for 2-3 hours.
Then cut them across. Dissolve some rum with water and
sugar. Then use this mixture to soak the cake parts. Fill
them with the yogurt cream. Preparation for the yogurt cream: Whip the cream and combine the cream sugar ricotta cheese and yogurt. Fill the Mantovana neccio cake and garnish as you want. |
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Metric 2 kg 100 g 100 g 100 g 200 g |
US 4 lbs chestnut flour wine peeled, sliced apples 4 oz chopped walnuts 4 oz chopped hazelnuts 4 oz pine nuts 7 oz raisins orange zest |
GLUTEN
FREE Soak the raisins in wine for an hour. Set aside. Make a dough with all the ingredients. Add raisins. Knead the dough well. Prepare some little dough balls and place them into little bags made from weaved chestnut leaves. Roast in oven at 350o F for about 30 minutes. |
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| Bring water to the boil. Pour in the sieved chestnut flour and try to obtain a soft cream, even containing some little balls of not dissolved flour. Let it boil for 30 minutes. Then serve in hot plates with milk or fresh cream on the top. | |||||||
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Metric 500 g 500 g 2 2 pkt 2 tbsp 2 tbsp 1 pinch |
US 3 3/4 C chestnut flour 3 3/4 C wheat flour 2 eggs 2 tsp baking powder 2 tbsp canola oil 2 tbsp sugar grated orange zest 1 pinch salt |
Make a dough with all the ingredients. Knead it well and let it rise. Roll it out and cut into round shapes. You can use a glass for this operation. Then fry them in plenty of hot oil. Dust with sugar and serve hot. | |||||
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Metric 50 g 11/2 glassfuls 200 g 3 1 pinch 100 g |
US 1.8 oz bitter chocolate 3 C milk orange zest 1 1/2 C chestnut flour 3 egg yolks 1 pinch salt 3/4 C sugar |
GLUTEN
FREE Melt the chocolate in a double boiler. Add 1 1/2 C milk and the zest of an orange to the chocolate. Allow to cool, and in the meantime mix 1 1/2 C chestnut flour with 1 1/2 C milk. Add 3 beaten egg yolks, the salt 3/4 C sugar, the melted chocolate cream. Fold in the stiffly-beaten egg whites. Butter a pudding basin, dust it with sugar and pour in the mixture. Put the basin in a container of very hot water and bake in a pre-heated oven, at 350o F. The pudding is done when it is firm and when a toothpick stuck in the middle of it comes out dry.
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TORTA DI CASTAGNE AL
CIOCCOLATO |
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Metric 500 g 1/2 l 150 g 50 g 50 g 10 g |
US 3 3/4 C chestnut flour 17 oz milk 1 1/8 cocoa 3/8 C wheat flour 3/8 C sugar 5 tsp baking soda |
Make a dough with all the ingredients. Pour into a buttered baking tin and bake | |||||
We're proud to be
members of Chestnut Growers of America, Inc.
© Allen Creek Farm 2000-2009
Artwork © Dankwardt Ink, Inc. 2009
