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Edible chestnuts are used primarily in the kitchen. The most famous are baked chestnuts, which can be bought on the streets of French and Italian cities. However, in the past, chestnuts were widely used in natural medicine, because they have many medicinal properties. Check the he alth effects of chestnuts and try out recipes for dishes with chestnuts.

Chestnutshave manynutritional values ​​ that were already appreciated in ancient Greece and the Roman Empire. In the Middle Ages, theirhealing propertieswere used by monks. Currently,is used more widely in the kitchen than in natural medicine. Edible chestnuts contain sucrose, malic acid, citric acid and lecithin. They also contain significant amounts of B vitamins that strengthen the nerves and the immune system, and a lot of potassium-lowering potassium. They also contain he althy fat - 2/3 are unsaturated fats.

Chestnut vs horse chestnut

Possibly Mediterranean chestnut fruit ( Castanea sativa ) should be distinguished from horse chestnut fruit ( Aesculus hippocastanum ), which is derived from from the Balkan Peninsula. It is important to know that the colloquial name "chestnut" when referring to the horse chestnut is inappropriate. The tree should be called the common (or common) horse chestnut, and the word "chestnut" may only be used for its fruit, which is bitter and serves only as food for the game (eg wild boar). People can eat them only after the bitter saponins have been neutralized. Chestnuts, on the other hand, can be eaten raw, baked or boiled. It is worth knowing that numerous noble varieties of chestnut have been bred, called marons, with large, tasty fruits.

Worth knowing

Nutritional value of edible chestnuts - raw / baked (in 100 g)Energy value - 213/245 kcal Total protein - 2.42 / 3.17 g Fat - 2.26 / 2.20 g Carbohydrates - 45.54 / 52.96 (including simple sugars: 0 / 10.60 g) Fiber - 8.1 / 5.1 gVitaminsVitamin C - 43.0 / 26.0 mg Thiamine - 0.238 / 0.243 mg Riboflavin - 0.168 / 0.175 mg Niacin -1.179 / 1.342 mg Vitamin B6 - 0.376 / 0.497 mg Folic acid - 62/70 µg Vitamin A - 28 IUMineralsCalcium - 27/29 mg Iron - 1.01 / 0.91 mg Magnesium - 32/33 mg Phosphorus - 93 / 107 mg Potassium - 518/592 mg Sodium - 3/2 mg Zinc - 0.52 / 0.57 mg

Fatty acids

saturated - 0.425 g monounsaturated - 0.780 g polyunsaturated - 0.894 gData Source: USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference

Chestnuts for pancreatic ailments

St. Hildegard (a famous German nun and healer) recommended edible chestnuts - depending on the method of their processing and administration - for pancreatic ailments: “If the pancreas hurts, let it bake the seeds of this tree on the fire, eat it often while still warm. And the pancreas will warm up and recover completely ”¹. According to St. Hildegard's chestnut also treated liver ailments - it was enough to crush the flesh of chestnuts, put them in honey (3 tablespoons of chestnuts per 100 g of honey), and then eat this honey to heal the liver. In turn, roasted chestnuts had a beneficial effect on the spleen.

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Chestnuts for headaches

In the past, chestnuts were also used for headaches, problems with memory and concentration. St. Hildegard advised that "a man whose brain is weakened and empty by drying out should cook the inner part of the fruit in water without adding anything. After draining the water, let him eat it on an empty stomach, and his brain will grow and fill, and his nerves will be strong, so also headaches will go away from him "¹.

Important

Chestnuts may cause allergies

Chestnuts are foods that people allergic to latex should be careful about. They may develop symptoms of allergy after eating chestnut, banana and kiwi fruit (the so-called cross allergy).

Chestnuts as an aphrodisiac

Edible chestnuts were considered an aphrodisiac. Supposedly, the dessert that awakens the senses is Mont Blanc, a sweet chestnut purée with a slight addition of cognac, decorated with whipped cream. In the past, a love drink was prepared from chestnuts soaked in muscadet (French white wine), and then cooked, among others. with pine seeds, pistachios, centipede seeds, cinnamon and sugar.

Chestnuts - an alternative for people suffering from celiac disease

Chestnut flour does not contain gluten, therefore it is an ideal substitute for wheat flour in the diet of people suffering fromceliac disease and people allergic to gluten. You can from it, among others bake bread, prepare pasta and sweets.

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Chestnuts - where to buy? What is their price?

Edible chestnuts do not grow in Poland, but in the Mediterranean, Asia Minor and the Caucasus. In our country, chestnuts can be bought in he alth food stores, as well as in larger supermarkets. Their price for 100 g is about PLN 7-10.

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Edible chestnuts - use in the kitchen

Edible chestnuts can be eaten raw, but first the hard skin must be removed. Besides, chestnuts can be baked and boiled. They can be stuffed with various types of meat, preserved as compotes or ground. The chestnut flour obtained at that time can be used as an additive to confectionery, bread, pudding or thickening soups. Roasted and shredded chestnuts can be used as a coffee substitute. Sugar can also be extracted from chestnuts.

It is worth knowing that in Italy, chestnut flour is cooked thickly in milk or water to obtain polenta, which is very popular in the local cuisine.

Edible chestnuts ripen at the turn of October and November, so it is worth reaching for them during this time.

In Hungary, grated chestnut mass, fresh or frozen, is used in the preparation of gesztenyepüré (Hungarian chestnut cream) and other confectionery products. In Germany, on the other hand,chestnut soup is eagerly eaten.In autumn and at the beginning of winter, in the streets of French and Italian cities, you can find sellers of hot chestnuts, baked in small portable stoves heated with charcoal.

Remember to buy shiny fruits with hard shells. It's best to gently press each fruit - if there is space under the shell, it means the fruit is rotten.

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How to prepare kasnuts ?

Chestnuts can be boiled in water for about 15 minutes. They can also be roasted in a pan, covered for approx. 10 minutes. Baked ones should be prepared in the oven at 200 degrees Celsius. Remember, however, that before cookingwhether you need to cut the skin of the fruit by baking. Otherwise, they may explode in the oven / pot. When the fruit has cooled down, remove the shell and remove the membrane with a knife.

How to make chestnuts?

Bibliography:

1. Kania M., Baraniak J., Derebecka N., Mrozikiewicz P., Herbal medicine and nutritional recommendations according to St. Hildegard of Bingen. Th. I, "Advances in Phytotherapy" 2012, no. 4

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