They were sweet and much softer than most nuts. They actually remined me a lot of butternut squash that has been cooked a little too dry. We liked them and save some for Abram to try when he got home. He'd never had any either. Owen yelled, "We have American chestnuts, Daddy before Abram even got the door unlocked. I had to explain several times that they were not American chestnuts; I guess he was so taken with the tree across the street that it stuck.
According to Sally Fallon (in Nourishing Traditions), they are used as a vegetable and are "rich in B vitamins, calcium, iron, phosphorus, and potassium" as well as a good source of trace minerals. They are lower in fat than most nuts (and can be cooked in butter or ghee, but we are out right now!) and higher in carbohydrates than most nuts. Here is some more detailed nurtion data for them.
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We have some beautiful European chestnuts here, and rather than hunting Easter eggs at Easter, we hunt for chestnuts and walnuts. They are so yummy roasted, but also nice boiled and mashed like potatoes. I really like them mashed with venison fillets cooked medium rare and au jus. It is a bit of a mission peeling them, though. I remember it took me an hour for one pot of mashed chestnuts.
I think the best way to roast is to mark the shell with an X, boil them for 10 minutes to loosen the shell, then peel before roasting. Otherwise, too much heat energy (etc) is stored in the nut... leading to violent escapes! The farmers market has a man who grills chestnuts in the autumn on a hot plate, and they are shelled before grilling (thank goodness).
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