L'autumn is the season of the chestnuts. In Campania numerous are the chestnut groves occupying a total area greater than 15,000 hectares. Small and intensely flavored, the chestnuts grown here are true excellences, among the best in d'Italy.

In the Fall, just choose the area, equip yourself with a bag and suitable shoes to organize a nice hike in the mountains in search of chestnuts. I chestnut groves campani are located in virtually every part of the region however, care must be taken: some chestnut groves are private and chestnuts cannot be picked freely unless they are on the side of the road.

Here are the most famous ones in Campania, perfect places for the autumn outings that even children like so much.

Chestnuts in and around Naples

Let's start right away with the Camaldoli Urban Park, a chestnut grove that covers about 100 hectares on the hillside of the city of Naples. The park is famous for its green walks and well-equipped areas for outdoor sports and other activities against the backdrop of breathtaking scenery.

From the neighbor Hermitage, it is possible to look at all of Naples at a glance, completely immersed in an atmosphere of peace and tranquility. In particular, in the autumn season, the park also becomes a destination for pleasant walks organized specifically to collect the delicious chestnuts that fall from the trees.

Also Ischia, famous for its famous beaches taken by storm by the tourists vacationers during the summer season, it changes its colors in autumn. So at the edges of its wooded areas, such as the one near the source of the Buceto, you can collect the small and dark Ischia chestnuts, with hard skin and crumbly flesh suitable for a thousand recipes both sweet and savory.

In Vesuvius National Park chestnut grows instead of Monte Somma. Chestnut groves here are numerous but private, so it is not possible to harvest the fruits without permission. However, at some farms, you can taste fantastic recipes typical of the Vesuvian autumn, such as the delicious chestnut soup.

Moving toward the province, not far from Naples, then arise the towns of Lettere, Pimonte and Castellammare, all three on the Mount Faito, one of the peaks of the Lattari Mountains, where lush chestnut groves grow. The prized Chestnut of Monte Faito, also called brownish o Cepparico chestnut

These fruits are harvested around September o October, when the flowers June ripeners finally evolve into hedgehogs. Each hedgehog has two to three chestnuts that are reddish brown in color with marked streaks. This quality of chestnut is distinguished by its white flesh and very sweet flavor, making it perfect for consumption either as a fresh or cooked product or used as an ingredient in the preparation of sweets chestnut-based.

The Chestnut of Montella and the Marrone or Chestnut of Serino.

In the numerous and extensive woods arising in the area of Avellino, the Montella IGP chestnut. This variety is named after the country of Montella but also grows in other municipalities in the Regional Park of the Picentini Mountains, such as those of Nusco, Montemarano, Bagnoli Irpino, Cassano Irpino and Volturara Irpino.

The fruit is medium-small and round, with a thin skin and intense color. Inside, the flesh is white and sweet. Montella chestnuts come from a precise cross of the palummina and verdolina varieties and possess special properties organoleptic that make its fruits appreciated both fresh and dried, frozen or cooked as roasted chestnuts.

During the Christmas season, the Montella chestnut is transformed into a culinary specialty: the priest's chestnut. This processing follows several steps that begin with the in-shell drying of the product, which is placed for about 15 days on chestnut wood racks, roasted in ventilated ovens and finally rehydrated in water. A long process that results in a product with a unique and special flavor.

Another excellence from Avellino that fears no comparison is the Chestnut or Marrone of Serino. Its production area includes inland municipalities in the province of Avellino and Salerno, going from Serino, Montoro and Solofra to Giffoni, Calvanico, and Castiglione in Salerno.

Historically, it was because of the Benedictine monks that the chestnut groves of the Picentini Mountains were cared for and upgraded to the production of a high-quality fruit. The Marrone di Serino is a large-sized chestnut with white-flour, sweetish, calloused flesh. Qualities that have made the Marrone di Serino one of the Italian excellences on par with the nearby Montella chestnut.

Its crisp texture makes it appreciated both as a fresh and processed product. It is exported internationally and is in high demand in the industrial chain, used in the preparation of world-famous products: the marron glacés.

The Chestnut of Roccadaspide

In the province of Salerno, among the areas of the Alburni and the Cilento, there are highland areas where a particular variety of chestnut grows that has been awarded the PGI, the Chestnut of Roccadaspide PGI, selected over the years from chestnuts sourced in Avellino.

The round, medium-sized fruits have a thin reddish-brown skin. Despite its modest size, this fruit has a white and very sweet flesh that makes it suitable for fresh consumption or in the preparation of roasted chestnuts.

This chestnut is also part of the excellence of Campania, used in the industry to make marron glacés.

Benevento chestnuts

In the villages around Benevento a modest amount of wild chestnuts and marrons are produced. These delicious autumn fruits in particular, grow in large quantities in the woods that belong to the Matese Regional Park or rising near the biopark in the Valley of the River Calore where the climate is ideal for the development of chestnut groves.

The small villages of Ospedaletto, Summonte but also Arpaise, Cusano Mutri, Pietraroja, Montesarchio, Vitulano and Civitella Licinio, often organize events and festivals where the protagonist is precisely the chestnut. The most famous are undoubtedly the chestnut festival in Arpaise, the one in Vitulano or even the festival of Cusano Mutri. Since 2020, these events have not been organized because of the pandemic, but you can keep up to date on the web and on the official websites of municipalities.

The Matese mountain areas are always perfect for expeditions in search of small wild chestnuts, suitable for making bread and soups Or enjoy boiled or baked.

The Chestnut of Roccamonfina

In the province of Caserta, precisely between the municipalities of Liberi, Pontelatone, Formicola, Roccaromana and Roccamonfina, grows the particular variety of chestnut ufarella o vofarella, also called Chestnut of Roccamonfina. A timely small chestnut, which is counted among the firstlings, clear-skinned, traversed by obvious streaks. The sweet fruit with septate flesh peels easily from the skin.

It is a variety mostly recognized locally and provincially, used in bakery and for the preparation of particular dishes such as "allesse" i.e. boiled soup, or as an indispensable ingredient of soups and first courses such as the noodles With chestnuts.

The chestnut tree

The chestnut is the fruit edible of thechestnut tree Castanea sativa. In recent times, however, the tree of Castanea crenata namely the Japanese chestnut tree, very similar to the European but more resistant to plant diseases. For this reason, botanical techniques involve grafting the two species.

The fruit of the chestnut originates from the fertilized female flowers (the domes), which later evolve into hedgehogs. This holds within it one to three chestnuts, more rarely and in some climatic conditions However, the hedgehog can grow to contain up to eight fruits inside it.

Each chestnut is, according to botanical classification, a achene protected by a smooth, woody, shiny-looking skin (the pericarp). At the top of this leathery shell, sprouts the so-called "flashlight", a vegetal clump, while on the basal part of the fruit a lighter area called "hilum".

The chestnut fruit is highly valued in cooking both as a dried fruit Than as a fresh product. Its flours are used in numerous recipes sweet and savory. From an industrial point of view, the chestnut is marketed virtually all year round in a variety of forms. The product is stored in aqueous solution or alcoholic, syrupy, frozen, dry or vacuum-packed, as candied or glazed, made into cream or puree but also as an ingredient in muesli, homogenized baby food, and both non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverages such as beers and spirits.

The chestnut and the brown

The fruit of the chestnut tree, so highly valued since ancient times, has been selected and hybridized in order to obtain products of increasing quality even according to commercial uses.

A first distinction is between chestnut and brown, which differ mainly in the appearance of the fruit: more set and small in the case of chestnut, larger and smoother if it is brown.

Higher quality chestnuts lend themselves better to candying, as in the case of the famous marron glacés French, or to industrial processing. The very sweet fruit has smooth flesh that is easily separated from the skin. Lighter and brighter than chestnuts, they have close streaks and are derived from trees that are less productive and more delicate from a phytopathological point of view.

Chestnut husks contain one or two fruits inside. Chestnuts, on the other hand, have medium or small-sized fruits that are more suitable for drying, freezing, vacuum or syrup storage, or for making flours.

Italy's many varieties of marrons and chestnuts depend on various factors such as the altitude at which they are grown and the cultivar of origin (the agrarian varieties).

Chestnut groves have been present in Italy for North to South, in virtually every region of the country. The most renowned varieties, identified with the PGI mark and PDO, are grown mainly in Piedmont, Tuscany and in the Campania region.

Although they can be found in the market and among food counters all year round, the harvesting of chestnuts takes place between the months of September and November, making this fruit the main food of autumn.

The ancient origins of the chestnut

The chestnut tree originated in very distant times. Its origins date back to the Prehistory, during Cenozoic era. Fossil evidence attests that at that time, the tree was already widespread in Asia, America and Europe.

During antiquity the chestnut was referred to by various names, which has created quite a few doubts in scholars. At the Greeks the chestnut was mentioned in the writings of various historical figures as "walnut flat" from Hippocrates or as "flat walnut without cracks" by the historian Xenophon, while Theophrastus identified this fruit as "Jupiter's acorn," in his famous book History of Plants.

Nicander as early as the 3rd century B.C. distinguished four varieties: Malaca, with tender fruit, Lipima whose main characteristic was traced to a particular difficulty in peeling it, Sardinia, named after the Asian city of Sardinians (capital of Lydia) and Gimnopola, with its smooth, hairless fruit.

Other evidence dates back to the time of the Romans, when the chestnut was called "raw nut" or simply castanea. The fruit was sold in markets and commonly cultivated as a fruit tree. Virgil attests us that of the chestnut tree not only the fruits were consumed, but also the leaves were used with which mattresses were made.

Pliny the Elder mentions among his famous lines, chestnuts as a highly valued fruit and at the same time hidden by nature in a "dome bristling with thorns," referring precisely to the hedgehog.

During the Middle Ages chestnut-growing forests spread to several regions of Italy. Thus precise laws were born to defend chestnut cultivation. A Lucca statute of the Offizio sopra le Selve was formulated, which provided for very severe penalties for violators of these regulations.

Those from Lombardy were the best chestnuts, according to the French people, who bought these fruits in large quantities to resell them in their markets.

Chestnuts were produced in ever-increasing numbers to such an extent that already widespread at the tables of the wealthy, they became a full-fledged part of the essential foods of the people. Called "poor man's bread," chestnuts gained such importance that they were used as a commodity for trade and payment.

In the modern age and during the early part of the twentieth century, chestnut production reached its peak. With the arrival of theindustrialization, instead, the production of these fruits began to decline rapidly. In those years, mountain people abandoned their mountain homes and their cultivated forests and moved to the more comfortable city.

Nevertheless, chestnut cultivation could not disappear because the chestnut, due to its high nutritional value, has continued to play a key role in the nutrition of peoples, on a par with the wheat and the others cereals.

Because of its goodness and great versatility in cooking, the chestnut has been selected to form multiple varieties, all with their own distinctive and organoleptic characteristics.

The many uses of the chestnut: in cooking and beyond

The chestnut is a fruit that can count on a high nutritive value. Because of its low water content, it fits in between the dried fruit distinguishing itself at the same time by its low concentration of fat. Fiber, sugars and protein are accompanied by a good amount of minerals such as magnesium, potassium, calcium, sulfur and phosphorus as well as the presence of vitamins B1 and B2 but also vitamin C and PP.

In the medicinal and cosmetic fields, however, the chestnut has always been considered by the people, a valuable ally of the health. Since ancient times and during the Middle Ages, several recipes were widespread to cure the most common ills. Unt decoction of chestnut leaves and husks was recommended against gout and migraine, while the fruits, boiled and then pounded with added honey, helped against liver disorders.

For heart diseases, it was recommended to consume chestnuts as a fresh product, while the roasted chestnuts were most suitable for those suffering from spleen disorders. In earlier times, chestnuts were part of the diet of those suffering from fever and to counteract the plague. Chestnut flour, combined with honey and salt, Was used in cases of poisoning or dog bites.

With expectorant and antispasmodic properties, the chestnut was also considered to be aphrodisiac and useful for many women's problems such as mastitis, too heavy menstruation or to prevent abortion. Also employed to combat baldness and ringworm, it appeared to possess properties of dermatological value.

Although the most recent medical studies have not been able to scientifically affirm the veracity of all these beneficial effects, the chestnut has been recognized as having a high energy value, tonic and remineralizing, especially useful in the diet of athletes who practice sports.

The chestnut fruit in China è symbol of welfare and of the justice Because it is present practically all year round. As a symbol heraldic, on the other hand, the chestnut depicts faith, resistance and the hidden virtues.

Legends related to chestnuts

There are numerous legends related to the chestnut, the queen of autumn appreciated by young and old alike.

It seems that the chestnut tree, long ago, was a very sad tree because unlike other trees, it had no fruit to bear. So it turned to the fairy green of the woods, pleading for help. The fairy agreed and told him that he would have to wait only one year before he could finally produce fruit.

Some time later, the chestnut tree saw a small family of hedgehogs in distress, fleeing from a pack of predators. He gave them his help and had them hide among his tall, thick branches. When the fairy heard about it, proudly rewarded the chestnut tree, immediately giving it fruits, chestnuts, hidden in green and small curls.

Another legend says that originally chestnuts did not have husks, but were born directly on the chestnut branches. One winter, however, the chestnuts all agreed and went to the oldest chestnut tree to ask for advice. The old tree told them to ask the hedgehogs in the forest for help. The small and tender animals understood the problem of the chestnuts who, without any protection, feared the cold of the forest, so they helped them by donating furs made from their spines. From that day on, each chestnut had its own protective fur: the hedgehog.

Another story is also told. One day in the woods a little family of hedgehogs living just beyond a chestnut tree, heard the sad complaints of its fruit. Each chestnut cried in fear because it feared the incursion of the dreaded squirrels who, in search of supplies, would kidnap them and take them to their burrows. So the hedgehogs decided to hide the poor chestnuts with their bodies. This worked and the chestnuts have been protected by the hedgehogs ever since.

The last legend has a character religious. It is said that chestnuts, which have always been a valued and important fruit for the mountaineers, were hidden by the Devil in a thorny and painful wrapping: the hedgehog. With this protection no man could gather and eat the important fruits. The desperate mountain people turned to God, asking for his help. He intervened and caused the hedgehogs to open in the fall season to cross, falling from the tall trees to offer ripe chestnuts to all men.