Chesters1 top tips 356

[chesters1]

For those wishing to hear the sounds of the first day of the somme forget to cut a groove in your chestnuts then cook them in a actifry !

Completely forgot how to cook them but its only 14 years since we had them last ,unfortunately we have no open fire anymore ,microwave?

[ayjay]

Grill or boil, skins come off easier with boiling, chestnuts taste better grilled.

 

I hope they were freebies, you have to get in quick before the squirrels though.

 

I don't know what birds eat them but I'm sure some must do: I took a walk a few days ago across a very open grassy area of the NF and the ground was littered absolutely everywhere with opened Sweet Chestnut thingys - at first I thought it must have been kids collecting them and then chucking them at each other but there were just too many spread over a very wide area - and I didn't notice a single chestnut anywhere in that lot. (Lots of Corvids in that area - they're getting my vote at the moment).

[chesters1]

Geese love them ours used to race each other up to the tree when a bunch dropped and were experts getting them out from the prickly case.

Jays i presume eat them ,i have seen them taking them along with jackdaws but they would have to break them up enough to swallow i have seen jackdaws put a foot on them then hammer away to get inside so i guess jays do the same

The chestnuts come from up the road theres a few trees overhanging the road but this year only one has nuts big enough to be worth taking the rest are tiny shrivelled ones so i presume the tree in question has a spring to drink from or has broken into the sewer

 

Strange years ,last year it was billions of acorns this year billions of beech masts ,no rowan berries in sight last year every tree was loaded.

Lots of conkers though but huge ones just up from the school but left alone !

Edited October 20, 2014 by chesters1

[ayjay]

Geese love them ours used to race each other up to the tree when a bunch dropped and were experts getting them out from the prickly case.

Jays i presume eat them ,i have seen them taking them along with jackdaws but they would have to break them up enough to swallow i have seen jackdaws put a foot on them then hammer away to get inside so i guess jays do the same

The chestnuts come from up the road theres a few trees overhanging the road but this year only one has nuts big enough to be worth taking the rest are tiny shrivelled ones so i presume the tree in question has a spring to drink from or has broken into the sewer

 

Strange years ,last year it was billions of acorns this year billions of beech masts ,no rowan berries in sight last year every tree was loaded.

Lots of conkers though but huge ones just up from the school but left alone !

I don't think this would be Geese: whatever it was must have collected them from the wooded Enclosure nearby, (and I can't see that being Geese, not even on a full moon).

 

There's a lot of Corvids in the area, Crows, Rooks, Jays, Magpies and a few Ravens.

 

Kids just don't play the old games that we did, I expect you only need to go back a coupleof generations and they'd say the same about us - everything modern is more exciting. My days were full of Hopscotch, Knock down Ginger, French Cricket, Marbles (in the gutter of course) flying kites, building trolleys, scrumping and just generally larking about on bomb sites.

[ayjay]

Grill or boil, skins come off easier with boiling, chestnuts taste better grilled.

You could also roast them in the oven.

[chesters1]

I don't think this would be Geese: whatever it was must have collected them from the wooded Enclosure nearby, (and I can't see that being Geese, not even on a full moon).

 

There's a lot of Corvids in the area, Crows, Rooks, Jays, Magpies and a few Ravens.

 

Kids just don't play the old games that we did, I expect you only need to go back a coupleof generations and they'd say the same about us - everything modern is more exciting. My days were full of Hopscotch, Knock down Ginger, French Cricket, Marbles (in the gutter of course) flying kites, building trolleys, scrumping and just generally larking about on bomb sites.

Talking of bombsites i used google earth to look at the ones we played on and all are gone now ,not talking about after the war but the late 50's ,surprised though to see one field which was allotments in the war was still there ,it was just a jungle when we played there but a jungle of old fruit trees and many types of brambles (some milk flavoured white ones?)and all the other fruit you can think of .

One end has a tennis court on now but the farm house is still there .it must have been of importance historically it had its own bridge over the railway and the footpath meandered down to a major road some distance away ,oh the stories that place could tell on the fumblings of a virgin and his girl friend, e every thing was sorted in the end ofcourse and the fumbling improved.

 

Bumped into the girl in question online a few years ago ,she sent me pictures i had long forgotten ,not told the mrs though some things are best not mentioned ,shes into NLP very strange !

Edited October 20, 2014 by chesters1

[Sportsman]

We have 3 large chestnut trees in the garden so have a lot of chestnuts.

Put a large heavy bottomed pan on top of the stove and fill it with dry sand.

Once the sand is hot, roast the chestnuts in the sand. Works really well.

Does anyone remember the hot chestnuts stall that you used to find on London streets. Probably going back to the 1950s now.

[chesters1]

We have 3 large chestnut trees in the garden so have a lot of chestnuts.

Put a large heavy bottomed pan on top of the stove and fill it with dry sand.

Once the sand is hot, roast the chestnuts in the sand. Works really well.

Does anyone remember the hot chestnuts stall that you used to find on London streets. Probably going back to the 1950s now.

thats a good idea .plenty of sand just 6" down.i rember the stalls a bag of chestnuts so hot you learned juggling.

wheeled affairs powered by charcoal ,some had metal sliding lids some glass thebest were from the metal ones i presume the other ones merely kept the nuts hot ?

i also remember in the early 60's a mini (as ln make of car) icecream "van" in several locations.

the chestnut sellers in question were near the Millwall stadium where my old man dragged me hoping my intense dislike of competative games would change ,it hasnt

[corydoras]

We have 3 large chestnut trees in the garden so have a lot of chestnuts.

Put a large heavy bottomed pan on top of the stove and fill it with dry sand.

Once the sand is hot, roast the chestnuts in the sand. Works really well.

Does anyone remember the hot chestnuts stall that you used to find on London streets. Probably going back to the 1950s now.

You can buy "chestnut roasting" machines in France, from revolving basket type devices that you can fit over your open fire (even new French houses have open fires chesters) to electric ones that look a bit like a slow cooker or a bread machine. Some people even make their own out of an old washing machine.

 

 

Châtaignes are a big thing in France, you almost always have them for Christmas dinner with the turkey and stuffing. They used to be a staple food in the past. You can buy chestnut flour (it makes really good crépes) chestnut liqueurs, chestnut jam, and of course glazed chestnuts (marrons glacés) so I am not surprised that you have a few trees nearby. They best ones are grown commercially in the Ardèche.

 

All the carpentry in my old flat in France wwas chestnut, from the roof beams to the floorboards. Even the front door was sweet chestnut wood.

Edited October 20, 2014 by corydoras

[chesters1]

we have an open fire but after the council had its way its very open ,no fireback so theres no updraft and they refused to remove the metal liner the gas fire had so its unusuable unless you like smoke and fumes in your room.

 

first house without one ,i preffered they left the gas heater but it cost money to service so they removed it .now we freeze in the powercuts or bring in the calor gas or camping gaz fires

 

i had thought sitting with your feet in the oven was long gone but its alive and well when you depend on electricity to keep you warm ,it annoys me alternatives are not supplied at least the gas fire never needed an electric supply unlike central heating ,why not a 12v pump instead of mains and a battery powered boiler control

 

when they removed it i asked how we kept warm in a powercut and the gas fitter said use a electric fire ...prick!

 

ps your roasting machine is the guts of a washing machine ,hopefully you wernt sent to the cleaners buying it

Edited October 20, 2014 by chesters1