Siena Lights

Before I left Siena at the end of November, the big talk around town was all the Christmas lights being strung through the streets. Tuscans have never been big  displayers of Christmas decor, but this year marks the beginning of what promises to be seasonal celebration on a grand scale. Along with strings of lights there are five huge Christmas trees throughout town in the most important piazzas, as well as a Christmas market set up in the Piazza del Campo. It seems the merchants and Monte di Paschi bank have finally concluded the best way to encourage holiday spending is to inspire the people with some Christmas cheer! They're beautiful!!

Note: the lovely green and orange Selva flag still flying in honor of our Palio victory last July! (pic on left!)

When I return to the US for Christmas, I always bring a few goodies I know I'll want to cook with, and this year I brought sacks of dried chestnuts and chestnut flour. Chestnuts were once an important part of the winter diet, high in protein and low in fat, and readily available for free in the woods. These days we start collecting them in the woods in Tuscany sometime in November and use them mainly for roasting over the open fire. They go beautifully with that extra glass of red wine after dinner.

Chestnut Tree in Montella

Until the end of the 19^th century the entire east coast of America was covered with old-growth chestnut trees and the nuts featured prominently in American cooking in colonial times. At the beginning of the last century, a fungus wiped out the American chestnut and now the majority of chestnuts in our stores in the winter are from Italy, most of them from the hills around Montella in Campania, our grandma's hometown.

Pick fresh chestnuts that are plump and solid feeling. To enjoy them roasted, just make a cut through the shell on the concave side and roast them in an oven (375 F for about 30 minutes). If you don't cut them, they'll explode.  To use them for cooking, boil them for 20 minutes, then peel the brown shell and skin and use the meat in stuffing or soups.  Here is a recipe for a lovely winter soup, creamy and rich and perfect for this festive season.