Chestnut Spread - CondimentClaire
This week I posted a video harvesting chestnuts and making homemade crème de marrons, or chestnut cream. I also shared the difference between chestnuts and horse chestnuts (or conkers) which is extremely important to discern!
Ever since, I’ve gotten an influx of comments and messages telling me that you’ve now tried this spread and are fans of the condiment!
Let’s get into it. Most easily put, chestnut cream is just a purée of chestnuts, sugar, vanilla, and a little salt to balance out the flavor. It has absolutely nothing to do with cream as there’s no dairy in it. It’s used as a crêpe filling, waffle topping, in yogurt, pastries and so forth. If you’ve ever been to France, you’ve probably seen a mont blanc in a patisserie window or a fromage blanc à la crème de marron on a bistro dessert menu… Alternatively, you may have just seen me scarfing down a warm crêpe à la crème de marrons on the corner of Blvd St Germain all whilst trying to run away from the clown that performs on that exact intersection.
Basically, chestnut cream (or should I say spread?) is an essential French condiment and is widely available in France; however, this condiment is practically impossible to find elsewhere.
If I am not making my own, my favorite brand of crème de marrons is Clement Faugier… Faugier is to crème de marrons as Heinz is to ketchup… It’s the go-to brand for the condiment. The brand is synonymous with the condiment.
Nowadays, the brand is responsible for over 80% of the chestnut spreads sold in France. An interesting (and unsurprising) fact is that a man by the name of Clément Faugier actually invented the spread in the late 1800s. Now, get ready to nerd out.
The spread was invented in 1882 as the company made candied chestnuts and was trying to salvage the bits that had broken off of the sweet treat. Back in the day, France made most candied chestnuts whereas nowadays, Italy dominates the market. Once all of those rogue pieces were recovered, they were blended together with some vanilla et voila chestnut cream was invented!
Now let’s get into some good juicy history drama…
During World War 2, German occupation meant that all chestnut production was to be halted due to rationing. Our boy, Clément, was a good businessman and wanted to provide the people of France with a familiar taste of home and past freedom… So, he sneakily continued to sell his stock.
How did he do so? He renamed his crème de marrons, Génovitine, and added some inosithohexaphosphate de magnésium aka magnesium inositol hexaphosphate aka a tasteless vitamin supplement to the recipe. By doing so, Clément did not change the flavor of his famous product and was able to sell his crème de marrons in pharmacies… YES pharmacies! Individuals could get a “prescription” from their doctors, pop over to their local pharmacy and grab a jar of that sweet spread. I can’t imagine the level of serotonin that first spoonful must have brought them…
In my opinion, chestnut spread is the most underrated sweet condiment. I said it. I’m really not exaggerating, I literally cannot think of another condiment that is lesser known and more flavorful. It’s hideous but it’s delicious. Everything about it screams cozy: the warm taste of the roasted chestnuts, the semi-grainy, thick consistency and the overwhelming holiday smell when you open a fresh jar. YUM.
Personally, I would choose chestnut cream over Nutella ANY DAY. I’m actually quite opposed to Nutella in general (let the hate messages flow in) but that’ll have to be for another week.
Claire x
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