How to Make Chestnut Cake (Castagnaccio), a Traditional Vegan Autumn Treat
Chestnut cake, also known as “Castagnaccio” in Italian, is a classic dessert from the regions near the Apennine Mountains. It is a very simple cake made primarily from chestnut flour and a few other ingredients, making it a quintessential autumn treat.
Equipment
- 1 Round cake pan (13 inch)
Ingredients
- 650 g water + more to soak raisins and pine nuts
- 80 g sultana raisins
- 60 g pine nuts
- 500 g chestnut flour
- 50 g extra virgin olive oil
- A pinch of salt
Instructions
- First, place the raisins and pine nuts in a bowl and cover with warm water. Let soak for 10 minutes. This will plump them up nicely.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the sifted chestnut flour with 650 g water and a pinch of salt. Mix thoroughly until there are no lumps. Now stir in 40 g of olive oil until fully combined.
- At this point, oil a low round cake tin with a diameter of 32 cm. Pour the chestnut flour mixture into the prepared pan, smoothing it out evenly to a thickness of about 1/2 inch. Scatter the soaked raisins and pine nuts evenly over the top. Drizzle with a bit more olive oil.
- Bake at 200 °C for about 20 minutes, or until lightly golden around the edges. Remove from oven and cool completely before cutting into squares.