If you have chestnuts dancing like sugarplums in your head this holiday season, try adding some Turkish recipes to your holiday and New Year menus this year.
Did you know that chestnuts are a Turkish favorite and hold a very special place in Turkish cuisine?
I will begin with traditional uses for chestnuts beginning with, believe it or not, street food. Hot roasted chestnuts have been sold by street vendors as one of Turkey's most popular snack foods on the run for hundreds of years.
Another traditional favorite with a lot history behind them are candied chestnuts from the Bursa region. Succulent chestnut kabob has been a favorite meat dish in the southeast for ages.
When it comes to contemporary Turkish cuisine, you can find chestnut dishes and sweets almost everywhere during the fall and winter months. The desserts category is the richest, where chestnuts are used in candies, cakes and desserts.
Pastry shops everywhere in Turkey are stacked high with chestnut cakes, parfaits, mousses and petit fours. Professional chefs and home cooks alike bring out their finest chestnut recipes for soups, appetizers and main courses this time of year.
If you love familiar holiday dishes featuring chestnuts, try your roast turkey with Turkish-style chestnut, rice and pine nut stuffing this year.
Find everything you need to know about the chestnut's place in Turkish cuisine, plus links to many great Turkish chestnut recipes in my newest article called Chestnuts Are A Favorite In Turkish Cuisine.
Turkish Rice, Currant and Pine Nut Stuffing Recipe
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