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Tuesday, October 10, 2017

Wordless Wednesday - Chestnut Trees and Chestnuts


Remember the song, Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire
Well I found a walkway with a row of prolific chestnut trees lining the side of a main street about15 minutes from my house.




How I found the chestnut trees.
My car wasn't working today,  so I had to walk to an appointment two miles away. 

I walked through a street that was tree lined with chestnut trees!! 
I wasn't sure what kind of trees they were at first.











The ground under the trees was covered with very sharp spiny balls that obviously fell from the trees. I know they were extremely sharp because I tried to pick one up.- bad idea...


After examining the spiny balls, the contents of the spiny balls, and the trees, I thought that they looked like chestnuts- but I wasn't sure.



I also saw some green balls still in the trees.


Actually for the past few weeks I had noticed groups of people of Asian background collecting something as I drove by. But from the road I could never tell what it was. ( I was curious)

Since I was walking, I was determined to discover what was so precious. 

There was a lone woman wearing heavy duty gloves who looked like she knew what she was doing. 
I asked her what was inside these spiny balls. Her English was broken, and she wasn't sure of the English name- she thought it might be a walnut. 

She told me she cooked it with a chicken dish and that these " nuts" were $7.00 a pound if you had to buy them. Instead, she was collecting what she could find. It was her first time.



I explained to her that I usually see a group of about 10 people combing the ground when I go to the gym about 7:30 AM -- She surmised that they probably got most of the good pickings! I agreed.



Meanwhile even without protective gloves and the use of my shoe, I still managed to coax out a few chestnuts for Wordless Wednesday.


This beautiful butterfly was on a nearby flower ..


Once my mother bought chestnuts and tried to roast them. They exploded all over the oven-!!!
So I looked online to find out exactly how to roast fresh chestnuts- I found this great tutorial by Tory Avey
How to Roast and Peel Chestnuts- which helped me understand why my mother's exploded

I look forward to your comments! 
Do you have a chestnut recipe, story, or comment- leave it in the comments
(if you are reading this in your email, you will need to click on the gray title to be taken to my actual blog post and then scroll down to the comments and click..)

Will be shared on shared on Beth Fish Reads Wordless Wednesday  Create With Joy 
Wordless Wed on Tuesdays wordless on tuesday http://thesimpleyear.com/, 

image in ing, 
ClaireJustine linky 
West Metro Mommy  
Create with Joy 
bethere2day nanahood

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25 comments:

  1. I'm not sure I've even eaten chestnuts. I sing the song every holiday but haven't eaten roasted chestnuts. My family was originally from Mobile, AL but moved to Tenn when I was 5. Alabama had pecan trees. My mother bought pecans in the fall to crack and eat. Guess it depends on where you grew up.

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    1. No one was more surprised than me. I had no idea that chestnuts grow in this area ( Philadelphia)

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  2. What an interesting post! I've only ever seen chestnuts all peeled and steamed, so had no idea what they looked like otherwise. I think they have a bit of a musty taste, but I do like them.

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    1. Thanks Pattie. It was an interesting find for me. I had no idea that chestnuts grew around here

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  3. They look so snug in their prickly little jackets

    Mollyx

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    1. Molly,
      I agree and I was amazed that there were chestnuts inside those funny looking balls

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  4. I haven't seen chestnut trees - or chestnuts - in forever. I wonder whether the trees have been impacted by disease, or if they simply don't grow in the area I've moved to.
    Thanks for sharing at https://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2017/10/beauty-on-wing.html

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    1. Sue,
      It was my first time and for wild trees , they look extremely healthy and the chestnuts are perfect

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  5. What a great find! Not sure I've ever seen one like that before. Have a great WW!

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    1. Someone obviously had to plant them a long time ago. Actually, the area that is now all developed used to be a farm. It might be there because it is near where the main farm house used to be

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  6. Interesting post! I wouldn't have recognized chestnuts either and I loved learning about them. Thank you. :)

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    1. Thanks for coming by and commenting. Glad you enjoyed the post

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  7. I love chestnuts. So neat to see them. We have a few chestnut trees in our neighborhood.

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    1. Beth,
      This was my first- didn't even know they grew in the wild.

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  8. How cool! I learned something today!!!!! thanks for linking up at NanaHood!

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    1. So glad you came by.. I found it very interesting too

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  9. Thanks for the pics and tutorial, I remember you have to slice them before roasting but this makes me want to get a bunch. I never thought you could go out and find them like this, love it. I guess I'm thinking they're like mushrooms or something but now that you mention it I'm surprised we didn't forage for these as kids since we had chestnuts roasting in the fireplace in the winter. Great fall photos, lots of black walnuts around here.

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    1. I was a little hesitant to take them to eat them- but they are on the street and their shell looks like it protects them from pollutants!

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  10. We lost all our chestnuts to a blight in the Blue Ridge Mountains of VA but I remember them as a child in the South Shore of Boston MA.

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    1. I guess they grow in many areas. Thanks for stopping by and commenting

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  11. This is a wonderful post! Having your car not working led you to a whole new experience. Life is funny sometimes. Thanks for sharing!

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  12. It's true. I had driven by for years but never had a place to park the car to look. Without the car I could walk there.

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  13. Wonderful clicks!
    I haven't tasted a chestnut till date!

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  14. What a lovely walk. A beautiful view. I love walking through the woods and spotting different thing. Whoo I love chestnuts. Thanks for sharing at The Wednesday Blog Hop.

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  15. We live in Europe for the moment and chestnuts are such a big part of the diet here! I really like them, but my kids not so much!
    http://travelingbugwiththreeboys-kelleyn.blogspot.de/2017/10/kassel.html

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Your comments are appreciated. I love knowing who is stopping by to read my posts! Have a great day.