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Today we’ll discover a typical dessert from Korean Cuisine. Little known in the West, Yul-lan are No-Bake Chestnut Cookies perfect for serving at tea time. Originally, their consumption was reserved for the upper classes and the royal family, while today everyone can enjoy these sweet bites. The Yul-lan Recipe we’ll see today is made with Chestnuts, but there are many other varieties. To distinguish one flavor from another, these treats are traditionally shaped to resemble the fruit they’re made with.
To prepare these No-Bake Chestnut Cookies, you’ll first need to boil the Chestnuts, then peel them and work them with Honey and Cinnamon. Finally, each Yul-lan will be decorated with crushed Pine Nuts to recreate the characteristic light spot at the base of chestnuts.
Among other Chestnut Desserts, we recommend trying Chestnut Truffles, Chestnut Fritters, and Chestnut Mini Cakes.
Ingredients
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Instructions
To prepare Yul-lan (Chinese-inspired chestnut sweets), start by washing the chestnuts under cold water and transfer them to a pot, covering them with about two inches of water. Bring to a boil and after 15 minutes lower the heat and continue cooking for another 10 minutes.
Drain them and cool them under running water.
Cut the chestnuts in half and scoop out the flesh with a small spoon. Transfer it to a mortar and pestle and grind until you obtain a puree-like consistency.
To make it more uniform, pass the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve, pressing it with a spatula to obtain a flour-like texture.
In a small saucepan, melt two tablespoons of honey (taken from the total amount) with cinnamon and salt. Let it boil briefly, then pour the syrup over the chestnut mixture, stirring well with a wooden spoon.
With moistened hands, first form balls about the size of a chestnut, then work them one by one to shape them as close as possible to the original chestnut shape.
Set aside momentarily and chop the pine nuts with a knife to obtain a coarse crumb.
Dip the base of each chestnut-shaped sweet in the remaining honey and then roll it in the crushed pine nuts. Arrange on a serving plate and store in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
