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13 May 2024, open the window number 3

(Last window on 25 December 2013)

The Old World Christmas Recipes Advent Calendar

Window nº 2

Marrons glacés (French crystallized chestnuts)

One of the traditional and very expensive Christmas indulgences can actually be made at home with much less trouble now that vacuum-packed cooked whole chestnuts are available in stores. Time-consuming (yes, it’s four days) but worth the effort if you really like marrons glacés (think Nesselrode pudding, vanilla ice cream, pureed chestnut Mont Blanc with whipped cream etc.). They also make excellent presents.

300 g cooked chestnuts
600 g sugar
0.6 l water
a vanilla pod or some vanilla essence
100 g icing sugar

1st day

Boil regular sugar with water and some vanilla seeds or a few drops of vanilla essence. Plunge chestnuts into the syrup and bring back to boil gently over a very slow fire. Remove from fire and let the chestnuts macerate in their syrup at room temperature for 24 hours.

2nd day

Take chestnuts out of the syrup with a slotted spoon. Bring the remaining syrup back to boil, get the chestnuts in and repeat the 1st day procedure.

3rd day

Repeat the 2nd day procedure.

4th day

Take chestnuts out of syrup with a slotted spoon and drain as well as possible. Heat the remaining syrup, mix it with icing sugar and plunge cryztallized chestnuts into the mixture. Dry them on a rack and then put them in the oven at 250 F for several minutes to make the glaze more firm. Your marrons glacés are done.

Window nº 1
Getting started...
German Peppernuts (Pfeffernüsse)

300 ml honey, 150 g sugar, 300 g butter, 700 g flour, 4 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp ground cinnamon. 1/4 tsp each ground white pepper, cardamom and cloves, zest of 1 orange and 1 lemon
icing: juice of 1 lemon 300 g icing sugar

Heat butter with honey and sugar in a big pot, bring to boil and let the mixture cool to body temperature. Stir in flour sifted with spices and baking powder, knead well. Roll smallish balls of dough (3 cm diameter) and put into a preheated (360F) oven on a lightly greased baking tray. Bake for about 20 minutes till done (they should not colour too much). Mix lemon juice with icing sugar and glaze peppernuts with this mixture while they are still warm. Let peppernuts cool. They’ll become quite hard but do not panic, keep calm and carry on. Put them away in tightly closed tins or jars and ‘forget’ about them for two or three weeks (if you want them to soften in a couple of days put a slice of apple with them, but it’s better to wait – the longer they keep the more flavourful they become). They become soft and melt-in-your mouth delicious with time. They keep fresh at room temperature for months – if they get a chance that is.

Season’s greetings from Sasha, Harbord Village, Toronto

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Window nº 2

Marrons glacés (French crystallized chestnuts)

One of the traditional and very expensive Christmas indulgences can actually be made at home with much less trouble now that vacuum-packed cooked whole chestnuts are available in stores. Time-consuming (yes, it’s four days) but worth the effort if you really like marrons glacés (think Nesselrode pudding, vanilla ice cream, pureed chestnut Mont Blanc with whipped cream etc.). They also make excellent presents.

300 g cooked chestnuts
600 g sugar
0.6 l water
a vanilla pod or some vanilla essence
100 g icing sugar

1st day

Boil regular sugar with water and some vanilla seeds or a few drops of vanilla essence. Plunge chestnuts into the syrup and bring back to boil gently over a very slow fire. Remove from fire and let the chestnuts macerate in their syrup at room temperature for 24 hours.

2nd day

Take chestnuts out of the syrup with a slotted spoon. Bring the remaining syrup back to boil, get the chestnuts in and repeat the 1st day procedure.

3rd day

Repeat the 2nd day procedure.

4th day

Take chestnuts out of syrup with a slotted spoon and drain as well as possible. Heat the remaining syrup, mix it with icing sugar and plunge cryztallized chestnuts into the mixture. Dry them on a rack and then put them in the oven at 250 F for several minutes to make the glaze more firm. Your marrons glacés are done.

Advientos Windows

Window nº 1

1-12-2013

Getting started...
German Peppernuts (Pfeffernüsse)

300 ml honey, 150 g sugar, 300 g butter, 700 g flour, 4 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp ground cinnamon. 1/4 tsp each ground white pepper, cardamom and cloves, zest of 1 orange and 1 lemon
icing: juice of 1 lemon 300 g icing sugar

Heat butter with honey and sugar in a big pot, bring to boil and let the mixture cool to body temperature. Stir in flour sifted with spices and baking powder, knead well. Roll smallish balls of dough (3 cm diameter) and put into a preheated (360F) oven on a lightly greased baking tray. Bake for about 20 minutes till done (they should not colour too much). Mix lemon juice with icing sugar and glaze peppernuts with this mixture while they are still warm. Let peppernuts cool. They’ll become quite hard but do not panic, keep calm and carry on. Put them away in tightly closed tins or jars and ‘forget’ about them for two or three weeks (if you want them to soften in a couple of days put a slice of apple with them, but it’s better to wait – the longer they keep the more flavourful they become). They become soft and melt-in-your mouth delicious with time. They keep fresh at room temperature for months – if they get a chance that is.

Window nº 2

2-12-2013

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