• 8 cups fresh chestnuts
  • 1/2 cup or 8 tablespoons (100 gr) butter
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 3 tablespoons bitter cocoa powder
  • 1 shot of espresso
  • whipped cream and marrons glacés (candied chestnuts) to garnish

Zuccotto is an Italian chilled dessert shaped like a dome, that consists of pieces of sponge cake (Pan di Spagna or Ladyfingers) filled with cream, mousse or chocolate.

There are many variations to this recipe. This one combines Zuccotto and Mont Blanc, but it is a little lighter (it doesn’t need eggs and pound cake or sponge cookies) and extremely delicious.

Procedure:

Boil chestnuts, peel them and mash them, reducing the pulp in a purée.


Add butter, lukewarm coffee, cocoa powder and sugar and mix all ingredients well until the purée gets a smooth velvety consistency.

Coat a bowl with saran wrap and pour in the mixture, pressing it down with a spoon to make it very compact.


Let the cream rest in the refrigerator for 8-10 hours.

Before serving, flip the Zuccotto upside down in a serving dish and garnish the top with whipped cream and Marron Glacés. Be careful though, these chestnuts, candied in sugar syrup and glazed, can be highly addictive!