Recipe from chestnutsaustralia.com.au
Preparation: 20 minutes
Cooking: 40 minutes
Ingredients for four
- 1+1/2 tbsp olive oil
- 100g sliced pancetta, chopped
- 1 brown onion, finely chopped
- 2 celery stalks, sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 2 long red chillies, deseeded and chopped
- Heat 2 tsp oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add pancetta and cook, stirring often, for 3 minutes or until crispy. Transfer to a plate. Set aside.
- Heat the remaining 1 tbsp oil in the pan over medium heat. Add onion, celery, garlic and chillies and cook, stirring often, for 4-5 minutes until softened.
- Add chestnuts and pumpkin and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Stir in stock and three-quarters of the pancetta. Cover and bring to the boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 20-25 minutes or until pumpkin and chestnuts are tender.
- Puree soup with a stick blender until smooth. Season to taste. Cover and bring to the boil over medium heat. Ladle soup into serving bowls. Top each with a dollop of sour cream, the remaining pancetta and extra sliced red chilli and serve.
Tip: You will need to roast 700g of fresh chestnuts to yield 500g of cooked and peeled chestnuts.
To roast chestnuts
- Preheat oven to 200°C (180°C fan-forced)
- Cut a shallow cross into the flat side of each chestnut shell. Place prepared chestnuts onto a baking tray and bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until the shells split open.
- Once cooked, remove chestnuts from the heat and wrap in a clean tea towel for 5 minutes. While chestnuts are still warm, quickly peel.