tis the season to be Marron!

The autumn season is commonly associated with chestnuts, pears, apples, pumpkin..etc. Many different cake shops seek to create new products with the good old chestnuts or marron. I personally don't like Mont Blanc cakes as they are often too sweet but am still willing to try other cakes that incorporate it as a main or side ingredient.

I notice that many of the Japanese customers love Mont Blanc as they are the ones that are quickly cleared off the shelves shortly after display. But well, here are some others that might showcase the creativity of the patisseries here.

By New York Gramcery

This is a mont blanc look alike but inside is actually crispy meringue sitting on top of a roll cake. The texture of the roll cake was slightly dry though.

栗のミルクレープ Chestnut Millecrepe by Ginza Cosy Corner

人気のミルクレープと秋の味覚「栗」との季節感あふれる組合せです。
やわらかなクレープの皮とごろっと入った渋栗の食感と風味の変化を楽しめる商品です。
This is a millecrepe that means the cake has been layered with a chocolate sponge base, chestnut mousse alternating with crepe layers.

Giotto no Mamenoki ジョトォの豆の木 by Giotto

This is the cream puff twist to the marrons. Guess that they are named  豆 or beans because they looked like big beans and the outer green choux pastry that covers the "beans" cream puff make this entire piece look like a forest littered with beans perhaps.

The mini Cream Puffs are sandwiched between a Matcha Choux Eclair and surrounded with even more custard cream.

Chestnuts from Italy has been used to make the mousse filling of the cream puffs but this is not entirely all chestnut flavour as 3 of them are filled with chocolate or custard cream. 

Emotion Mont Blanc エモーション モンブラン By Pierre Herme

様々な味覚、食感が新しい「モンブラン」。イチゴ入りエグランティーヌ（野バラの実）のコンポートが、マロンの甘く優しいクリームとジュレ、バニラの香りいっぱいのマスカルポーネクリームをひと際引き立たせます。
Marron cream, Vanilla Mascarpone Mousse, Strawberry Compote, Marron Gelee, Pistachios and Vanilla Jelly. 
This is the verrine version to a Marron patisserie. Interesting, complex but an odd combination of chestnut and strawberries in one. The strawberry jelly are truly made of raw strawberries and no food coloring has been added to it.

Marrons sitted on a chocolate mousse that has a centre filled with crispy millefeuille layers and wrapped altogether by a crepe. By CAJU

In fact, this one is not a strictly marron dessert as the chestnuts are just placed on top. But it is amazing how the millefeuille bar remains crispy sitted in the midst of chocolate cream. Surprisingly, chocolate pairs very well with chestnut too.

Caramel Marron Mousse on a Chocolate biscuit tart base.

By Plume

The marron mousse is actually not too sweet but the mousse leaned more towards one with a rubbery exterior shell. One can guess roughly how this was assembled. The marron pudding is first baked and inverted such that the caramel sauce would drizzle down and collect in the biscuit tart. That is why there is actually nothing but caramel sauce and nuts( walnuts, hazelnuts, pistachios, almonds) at the base. This would surprise people who expect that that tart be filled with fragipane or some cream instead of being filled with liquid caramel.


The above are just few of the many different chestnuts creations that are in season now.