Maroniknödel mit Schokoladesauce (Chestnut dumplings with chocolate sauce)

Chestnuts originally came from Asia Minor. For many years the heart-shaped nuts were ground into flour and used to bake bread due to their high starch content. Nowadays they are a popular ingredient in typical Viennese desserts (such as Maroniknödel, the German name for chestnut dumplings, which dates back to the 16th century and is derived from the French word "marron" meaning "brown"). And out on the city’s streets, every autumn the sweet scent of roast chestnuts fills the frosty air as stands selling these traditional delicacies spring up all over the capital. Try out our recipe for Viennese chestnut dumplings – the perfect way to get into the Christmas spirit!

Ingredients:

400g chestnuts (or 250g ready-made chestnut puree)
80g powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla sugar
1-2 tbsp rum
100g flaked almonds
3 tbsp butter
Salt
Chocolate sauce

For the dough:

250g potatoes (floury)
100g coarse flour
50g golden or durum wheat semolina
1 egg yolk
25g soft butter
1 tbsp corn starch
Pinch of nutmeg
Pinch of salt
Flour for rolling

Preparation:

For the dough, peel, wash and quarter the potatoes, and cook in salted water until soft. Leave to cool, then shred using a potato press. Mix with the remaining ingredients to make a firm dough, and form into a roll. Make a cross-cut on each chestnut. Place in a pan, cover with water and cook until soft (peel one chestnut to check if properly cooked). Peel the chestnuts and press through a puree sieve. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla sugar and rum, and leave to cool (if the mixture is too thick, add more powdered sugar). Roll out the dough until about 4 millimeters thick and cut out discs of around 7 centimeters in diameter. Divide the chestnut mixture into 16 equal-sized balls (keep the rest for decorating). Place each ball on a dough disc and form into small dumplings. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Place the dumplings in the pan, cover and simmer on a low heat for 10 minutes. Roast the flaked almonds in melted butter. Press the remaining chestnut mixture through a grater.
Put a portion of warm chocolate sauce on a plate. Remove the dumplings from the pan, drain and roll in the roast flaked almonds. Place a dumpling in the sauce and sprinkle with the remaining chestnut puree.

Cooking time: about 10 minutes