Bella Vita’s Celso Paganini introduced me to his newly innovated laser-cut chestnuts when we got together last month. First, there’s nothing different about the chestnuts themselves, extraordinarily fully flavorful northern Italian “Marroni” chestnuts. Instead, the innovation comes in the form of a long laser cut on one side of the chestnut that slices only through the tough shell but leaves the moisture-retaining membrane intact, as shown in the closeup above.

I roasted those chestnuts exactly as shown in the directions you can get by either clicking this link or any picture on this page.

My only concern was that Celso’s laser-cut chestnuts, with only one cut in the chestnut shell that left the membrane intact, might explode under high roasting heat. But nothing close to that happened. Roasting went exceptionally well, and the finished roasted chestnuts peeled incredibly easily one after another, as shown in the pictures below.

Unfortunately this year’s chestnut season, just like the year itself, is over, but I’ll check in with Celso and find out how you can get fantastically fresh and flavorful chestnuts later next year.

For now, I wish your family, friends and you a warm close to 2024 with the promise of more full-on flavorful in 2025.

Happy New Year!