Chestnut & chocolate cups with Metaxa
Κάστανα με Σοκολάτα κε Μεταξά
Kástana mé sokoláta ke Metaxá
OMG!!! I could eat ALL of these in one sitting!!
Go and grab yourselves a handful of chestnuts, NOW! Chestnuts are in season and they’re looking spunky @ your local green grocer. Spooned into Greek coffee cups, these decadent sweeties even look like Greek coffee!!
Ingredients
200g semisweet chocolate, 70% cocoa
¼ cup Metaxa brandy
80g unsalted butter, @ room temperature & diced
2 free range eggs, separated
a splash of vanilla extract
about 1 cup chestnut puree, extracted from a good handful of fresh chestnuts
1 Tbspn sugar
Whipped thickened or double cream (to garnish)
Directions
To prepare the fresh chestnuts:
Score a cross in each chestnut with a sharp knife
Place in a pot with salted water and boil for about 20 mins.
When ready, use a teaspoon to scoop out the chestnut meal, squeezing the nut as you do so.
To prepare the choc cups:
Make a few chocolate curls for garnish, then break the rest of the chocolate into squares and melt it with the brandy in a saucepan over gentle heat.
Remove from the heat and add the butter, a few pieces at a time, stirring until melted and smooth. Transfer this mixture into the bowl of a food processor.
Add egg yolks and whizz the mixture in the food processor.
Then whizz in the chestnut puree, mixing until very, very smooth.
Splash in the vanilla extract & transfer this mixture into a clean bowl.
Whisk the egg whites & sugar in the clean, grease free bowl of your mixer until stiff.
Stir about 1 tablespoon of the whites into the chestnut mixture to lighten it, then fold in the rest smoothly and evenly.
Spoon the mixture into 6 small ramekins or Greek coffee cups and chill until set.
Serve the pots topped with a generous spoonful of whipped cream and garnished with the semisweet chocolate curls.
Gluten free.
xo.
Comment by MARIA TOURIKIS WAINWRIGHT — December 10, 2010 @ 7:03 am
This Dessert was amazing!!!
So simple and easy to make in advance and just serve and enjoy after a busy day of cooking!!!!
I have been wanting to make this since Vicki Peppos from The Sweet Greek posted it on her Australian Cooking School Link!
The only difference was that I did not measure the Metaxa…. I also added a large slice or two of Orange Peel when melting the Chocolate. I used Cooked Chestnuts in a Jar from Whole Foods and I just crumbled them…. at the end I just folded in some toasted Walnuts! For the whipping Cream on top…I added a bit of sugar and a bit of Metaxa too!!!!
I hope that you try this!!!!
THANK YOU VICKI!!!!!
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M TOURIKIS WAINWRIGHT