Chestnut Cake with Chocolate & Saffron Whipped Cream

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This cake recipe is a delicious way to incorporate the lovely, seasonal chestnut in a sweet treat that is sure to impress. Bittersweet chocolate and saffron whipped cream are the perfect way to accent its nutty flavor.

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds fresh chestnuts in the shell
• 8 cups water

• 4 tablespoons melted butter
• 7 whole eggs, 4 separated
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup heavy cream

• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 pinch saffron
• 1/4 cup sugar

Directions:

Boil the chestnuts in a pressure cooker for 40 minutes; allow the pressure to drop by itself. When chestnuts are cool enough to handle, peel the hard shell and fuzzy inner skin off the meats. In a food processor, combine meats and melted butter and process until the chestnuts are ground fine but not turned to paste.

Preheat the oven to 375° F. Heavily butter a Bundt pan. Be sure to get all the nooks and crannies: this is a sticky batter.

Mix whole eggs, separated yolks and sugar until the eggs turn lighter colored and a little fluffy. Mix in salt. Add chestnut mixture, stirring until blended. In a separate bowl, whisk the separated egg whites until they hold stiff peaks.

Gently fold egg whites into chestnut batter. Pour into a heavily greased Bundt pan. Bake at 375° until a cake tester comes out clean, about 50 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then invert onto a serving plate.

While the cake bakes, heat the half-cup of cream in a small, heavy saucepan. Place chocolate chips in a small bowl. When the cream simmers, pour it over the chocolate and cover for 10 minutes. Whisk until smooth.

When the cake has cooled in the pan and then on the serving plate for another few minutes, pour the chocolate glaze carefully around the top of the circle of cake so that it drips and melts down the sides. (You may want to stand your cake plate on a baking sheet to confine the mess.) Use the chocolate to cover any chips in the cake where it stuck to the pan.

When the cake is completely cool, whip the cup of heavy cream, sprinkling in the saffron and sugar gradually. When the cream is stiff, dollop it around the top of the cake like snow on the top of the Alps. If you have extra, you can fill the hole in the center of the cake circle.

Serve immediately.

Serves 8-10 Printer-friendly version