APPENDIX 2

SELECTED RECIPES

Mix eggs, syrup, sugar, butter, flour, vanilla and salt. Beat until smooth with a rotary beater. Stir in nuts. Fill pastry shell. Bake at 180^o C for about 40 minutes.

Cream sugar, shortening and eggs. Stir in vanilla, add buttermilk alternatively with dry ingredients. Mix well. Stir in oatmeal and acorn meal. Drop teaspoonfuls onto a greased baking sheet. Bake for 12 minutes at 190 ^oC (Derby, 1990).

CHESTNUTS

COOKING CHESTNUTS^[62]

Prior to cooking chestnuts, a small “x” should be cut through the shell into the flat side of the nut with a small, sharp knife. This will prevent the nuts from bursting during cooking.

For fireplace roasting, use a long handled pan or a fireplace popcorn basket. Do not crowd the chestnuts because all sides should be in contact with the pan. Shake the pan and hold it just above the flames, not in the flames. Cook in this manner for about 15 minutes or until the outside shell is black. Remove the nuts from the pan to an area where they can cool. When they are cool enough to touch, peel and eat. The interiors should have a creamy texture

For oven roasting, lay the nuts in one layer in an ovenproof dish. Bake at 180°C for about 30 minutes. For stovetop cooking, cook in a heavy, cast-iron pan. Again, do not crowd the chestnuts. Cook over moderate heat and shake the pan. Cook until shells appear cooked or you can smell the nuts.

CHESTNUT STUFFING - USA

Chestnut stuffing has been an accompaniment to the traditional roast turkey served during the Thanksgiving holiday season in North America.

0.5 to 0.75 kg loaf of bread, dried

125-250 ml cooking oil

5 grams salt

2.5 grams pepper

½ cup minced onion

32 grams poultry seasoning

½ kg chestnuts cooked and chopped

Cut sliced bread into 2.5 cm cubes. Toss all ingredients together lightly. Stuffing may be baked in an oiled ring mold or loaf pan if you do not want to bake it with fowl or meat. When stuffing is removed from the ring mold, hot cooked vegetables may be placed in the center.

CHESTNUT, MILK AND RICE SOUP - MINESTRA DI RISO, LATTE E CASTAGNE - ITALY

200 grams fresh chestnuts

150 grams pudding rice

500 ml milk

30 grams unsalted butter, salt

Pierce the chestnuts with a fork, put them in a pan, cover with lukewarm water and boil for 5 to 8 minutes. Drain, then remove the shell and soft inner skin. Place in a large pan with about 1 ½ liters of salted water and boil over medium heat for 2 ½ hour or until the nuts are disintegrating and the liquid halved.

Add the rice and cook for another 12 minutes or until the rice is half cooked, then add the milk and butter. Cook until the soup is very thick and creamy, then season and serve hot. Serves 4 (Harris 1989).

PERSIMMONS PERSIMMON JAM -USA

5-6 average-size very ripe persimmons

1 cup water

1 package pectin

½ cup lemon juice

6 cups sugar

Prepare fruit by cutting into small pieces and then pureé. Measure fruit and water into large kettle. Stir in pectin and lemon juice. Bring to a full rolling boil and boil for 30 seconds. Add sugar and again bring to a rolling boil for exactly 4 minutes, by the clock. Stir constantly. Remove from heat and pour into sterilized containers. Makes 6 jars of jam.^[63]

EDIBLE MUSHROOMS

BORDEAUX STYLE CÈPES (CÈPES À LA BORDELAISE) - FRANCE

0.5 kg fresh cèpes (Boletus edulis)

oil, salt, pepper

5 grams chopped shallot

16 grams breadcrumbs

lemon juice

chopped parsley

Wipe the cèpes, trim the heads and chop the stalks. Add a little seasoning. Heat some oil in a sauté pan and cook the cèpes until they begin to brown. Add the shallot and breadcrumbs. Sauté all together for a few minutes. Put in a serving dish, add lemon juice and sprinkle with parsley or, if preferred, add two tablespoons of melted meat jelly (Escoffier 1992).

CÉPES WITH CHEESE (CÉPES AU FROMAGE) - FRANCE

Canned cèpes (Boletus edulis)

Salt, Pepper

Flour

Oil

Butter

Grated cheese

Tomato sauce

Rinse and dry the cèpes and cut into thin slices. Season, coat with flour and cheese and sauté in oil or butter. Put into small cocettes, sprinkle with cheese and cover with the tomato sauce. Add a little melted butter and put into a moderate oven for a few minutes (Escoffier 1992).

TRUFFLES COOKED UNDER CHARCOAL CINDERS (TRUFFES SOUS LE CENDRE) - FRANCE

Choose some nice fresh truffles, clean them carefully but do not peel. Salt them sparingly and add a dash of brandy.

First wrap each truffle in a thin slice of pork fat, then in aluminium foil. Place them on a bed of hot charcoal cinders and cover with another layer of cinders. On top of this, place a sheet of iron containing more cinders, so that a regular heat may be sustained.

Cook for 30-45 minutes, depending on the size of the truffles.

Remove the foil and serve on a folded napkin with butter (Escoffier, 1992).

BOILED RICE WITH WHITE TRUFFLES (RISO IN BIANCO CON TARTUFI BIANCHI) - ITALY

This is one of the classic ways of eating the white truffle of the Piedmont Region of northern Italy.

Prepare a dish of boiled rice, pour over it a large quantity of the best grated Parmesan cheese, an equally generous amount of fresh, unsalted butter and raw truffles cut in the finest of slices (David, 1987).