Bacon Wrapped Chestnuts 19/325

The Relation

Barbara Fulk center

Barbara Fulk is my first cousin, twice removed. She was the fifth child of Joseph Hausner Weber and Elizabeth O'Donnell (side note: in the handbook, it states that Elizabeth passed on 11-15-10... which is five years before she was born. Can someone please fact check? Thanks.) In the photo, she is center (l-r, Cousins Teresa Antey, Barbara Fulk and Helen Grether)

*Edit: I realize now that's born in 1915 and passed in 2010. Oops.

The Process

My first thoughts on this recipe were "hm, this is new and interesting?" I've had bacon-wrapped scallops before; they were a staple at my first job in weddings. But chestnuts? Totally wild and new. I had a heck of a time finding chestnuts in the grocery store. I think I ended up in the international aisle before I had any luck. I was doubling the recipe, so I bought four cans in total. I only ended up using three.

The bacon was the limiting reagent in this formula. I ran out of it first. If you're looking to make a lot of these, buy an extra pack of bacon (worst comes to worst, you've got breakfast for the next day!). I also would argue that buying thinner cut bacon might have been a better plan. I used the standard Oscar Meyer center cut bacon. Cutting the chestnuts into thirds was really easy, but I guarantee you they were nowhere near equal-sized. I tried my best though.

Rolling up the chestnuts took the most active time, so make sure you're planning ahead. I packed the skewers really tightly on the pan because I had so many. Pro tip: cover pans with aluminum foil. Yes, it's a tad wasteful, but it will save you so much time and effort in cleaning up. It also makes saving the bacon grease for the special pups in your life much, much, easier.

As the first tray came out of the oven, College Pals Armon and Josh arrived and were quickly recruited into being sous chefs. I had been dipping each skewer into the catsup(ketchup) mixer one and a time. My new sous chefs were much smarter than me and quickly asked for some sort of brush to apply the mixer. I will say the coating was much lighter, but the process went much faster.

Armon & Josh helping out

You cannot, and I repeat, cannot, rush the process on the cooking time. I pumped up the temperature on the second tray to get them out faster, and they quickly burned. Patience is a virtue, friends.

The Feedback

AMAZING. They are in no way healthy for you but holy cow, are these things delicious. They are crisp, sweet and savory. A few of my College Pals also commented on this was a favorite of the evening. It's a great passed hor d'oeuvres for those of you who have posh cocktail parties on the regular.

The Receipt

BACON WRAPPED CHESTNUTS - CC90
Barbara Fulk

2 cans water chestnuts
½ lb bacon
⅔ cup brown sugar
1 cup catsup

Cut chestnuts into thirds. Cut bacon into fourths. Wrap chestnuts in bacon and secure with toothpicks. Bake at 250° for 1 hour. Mix brown sugar and catsup. Dip bacon-wrapped chestnuts in mixture and bake again at 250° for another hour.