Some foods seem to be a family thing.
Take chestnuts, for example. I love them candied, my Maman enjoys them plain or roasted, and my French grandmother was a chestnut-lover as well. Chestnut-loving could very well be hereditary, and that's not something to overlook.
If you've got a handed-down love for a type of food, then it might just be your duty to make everyone else around you love it as well. It started out pretty well for us: my aunt Mimi, not a huge fan of chestnuts, made her own candied chestnuts this year. Then again, that might have something to do with the fact that she's my Maman's sister. I suspect a hidden appreciation for chestnuts somewhere.
A few days before the New Year, Maman came across a recipe in French Saveurs magazine that is honestly irresistible for the chestnut aficionado out there: chocolate-chestnut layer cake. Fluffly layers of chocolate génoise sandwich a rich, luscious chestnut cream sprinkled with candied chestnuts. Oh, and there's a dark chocolate ganache frosting in there too.
You might be thinking January is definitely not the time for this over-indulgence, but the cake is surprisingly light due to the airiness of the génoise. A year-long way of celebrating hereditary love of chestnuts: I'm in. Are you?
Chocolate-Chestnut Cake
adapted from French Saveurs
serves 8 to 10
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