Pudding aux Marrons (chestnut pudding)

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This “pudding aux marrons” or chestnut pudding is a personal recipe. It is a delicious delicate and light dessert. It combines the earthy flavour of the chestnut with the moistness of a steamed pudding.  It is also gluten free.

The photo above is a variation from this recipe. This recipe requires baking in a closed pudding bowl in bain-marie whereas on the photo the pudding was cooked in a half bain-marie  with the tin opened to the top.  Our au-pair did not know what a pudding tin looked like and adapted to the situation, she did a great job at managing a very good desert.  I will change the photo when I make the pudding next.

You can make you own chestnut puree, it does take a bit of time thought but at least you can control the sweetness of it or you can find cans of chestnut puree in deli shops.  This recipe is based on a chestnut puree unsweetened with chestnuts cooked in milk (as opposed to water). If you are using canned chestnut puree, adapt the sugar quantity.

The cooking time is quite long (about 1 hour).

Serves 8.

Ingredients
  • 250 g of chestnut puree cooked in milk and unsweetened
  • 6 eggs
  • 180 g of caster sugar
  • 125 g of almond meal
  • 60 g of butter
  • vanilla extract
Method
  1. Pre-heat the oven at 160°C
  2. Add to the chestnut puree, the egg yolks one at the time, preserving the white in a clean bowl.
  3. Add to the mix, the vanilla, sugar and almonds
  4. Add the softened butter (it works as well if melted)
  5. Beat the egg to snow to firm peaks
  6. Gently fold the egg white into the mix.
  7. Butter the pudding tin well.  Pour the mix in it. Close the tin.  If you do not have a lid, you can use a couple layers of aluminium foil and some string to make a lid.
  8. Cook for close to an hour.  The first time you make this pudding, you may want to check the cake around 50 minutes cooking time with a thin skewer.  Try to do so quickly not to loose too much heat. the pudding should be (if not cooked) very close to it, and will not collapse. The skewer should come out from the cake dry (no uncooked cake sticking to it). Replace in the oven if necessary.

Serve with creme anglaise or strawberry coulis.