Chestnut Cake

This is the first time in 22 years I get to celebrate Mother's Day with my mom and grandma.    My mom loves chestnut cakes.  I remember when I was a kid, I could never understand why she loved these cakes so much.  The chestnut on top of the cake is usually dry and crumbly.... the appearance is not that appealing to me.  For someone who has never eaten a piece of the chestnut cake which mom loves, it is quite a challenge to create this cake through reverse-engineering.  

I made it simple.  I used my favourite 5-4-3 sponge cake recipe from Double Cream Single Sugar:

5-4-3 Sponge Cake

5 eggs

4 oz. sugar

3 oz. plain flour, sifted

1.5 oz. melted butter, cooled

1. Separate the eggs into whites and yolks. Turn on the oven to 325 F. Line the bottom of baking sheet/springform pan with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Beat the egg whites into soft peaks. Gradually add sugar and keep whisking until stiff peaks form. Slowly add the yolks into the mixture while mixing at low speed.
3. Lightly fold in sifted flour. (Or alternatively, if you are using a standmixer, switch the machine to stir while adding in sifted flour. Stir until just incorporated.
4. Fold in melted butter. Immediately pour in baking pan/sheet and bake 40 to 60 mins, depending on size.

As for the most crucial ingredient - chestnut, I bought this Hero canned chestnut puree from Michaelangelo.  I have used other brands but I found Hero's has the best quality and taste... although this can is not cheap.  Now I understand why chestnut cake is always more expensive than other cakes.  

For the filling, I simply mixed in the chestnut puree with whipping cream.  No need to add sugar because the puree is already sweetened.  I made the filling like whipped cream with chestnut flavour, because I didn't want the filling between the cake layers overpowered the chestnut puree on top of the cake.  

JollyMommy has the perfect recipe for the chestnut puree:

Ingredients:

430g Heron chestnut puree
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 large egg yolk
1.5 tsp vanilla extract

Method:

1.  Whisk egg yolk, vanilla, and cream in saucepan over heat until thickened.
2.  Add to chestnut puree in large mixing bowl.
3.  Mix at high speed until smooth.
4.  Cover with plastic wrap.  Set aside until cool and ready to use.

Verdict:  It's a complete sold-out.