
These Quick Candied Chestnuts have a soft and tender interior and a slightly chewy and sticky exterior. Chestnuts are candied in a mixture of brown sugar, honey, butter, warming spices, and brandy for a delicious holiday snack or even gift.
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Hello, folks! How are you doing? I hope you are doing well this week, and that you are getting ready for the weekend. If you ask me, I was ready on Monday around 9 am!
Today I am going to keep it short and sweet. Besides, who needs long conversations when you have a delicious recipe? And these Quick Candied Chestnuts are utterly good, believe me.
Quick Candied Chestnuts
Have you heard of Marrons Glacé? These are candied chestnuts, and I have wanted to make this recipe for years. A challenge? They require a lot of time and effort to invest – I am talking like 3 days from start to finish. Maybe, one day I can tackle this classic recipe, but not today, definitely not.
So, one day I was browsing the Internet for some inspiration, and I found it on the blog Drive Me Hungry – the recipe for Quick Candied Chestnuts. Cooking time? About 20 minutes plus time for cooling. Yes, these are different from Marrons Glacé, but I am taking it!
I followed Jamie’s recipe, with a few tweaks, to make it even more exciting. I used a combination of brown sugar and honey, as well as opted for a combination of warming spices like cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. And a good splash (or a few!) of brandy never hurts. Chestnuts, honey, spices, and brandy… don’t this recipe scream: “Holidays!”? I think there is even more room for an experiment. Think of infusing the syrup by adding, for example, clementine zest or rosemary!
More Festive Chestnut Recipes
I hope you like these tasty Quick Candied Chestnuts, and you will enjoy it this holiday season. If you make it, let me know in this post or send me an Instagram message or share you photos adding the hashtag #havocinthekitchen.
Cheers!



Quick Candied Chestnuts
Course: Snacks, Dessert8-12
servings10
minutes20
minutesThese Quick Candied Chestnuts have a soft and tender interior and a slightly chewy and sticky exterior. Chestnuts are candied in a mixture of brown sugar, honey, butter, warming spices, and brandy for a delicious holiday snack or even gift.
Adapted from Quick Candied Chestnuts – Drive Me Hungry
Ingredients
400 gr. cooked and peeled chestnuts (I used vacuum-packed)
2 cups (500 ml.) water
2/3 cup (125 gr.) light-brown (golden) sugar
2 tbsp. (40 gr.) honey
2 tbsp. (30 gr.) butter
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon and ginger, each
a few generous gratings of nutmeg
a few generous splashes (2-3 tbsp. or 30-45 ml.) of brandy (optional)
Directions
- Add the water, sugar, honey, butter, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg to a pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Simmer for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the chestnuts and stir gently to coat them with the syrup, being careful not to break apart the nuts. Let the mixture boil uncovered until most of the liquid has evaporated evaporated, which should take between 15 to 20 minutes.
- At the end, if desired, add the brandy and let the alcohol burn down for a minute or so.
- Turn the heat off and let the chestnuts slightly cool. Then using a slotted spoon, remove the chestnuts allowing the excess of the syrup to drain and place them on a baking sheet lined with foil or parchment paper. Let the chestnuts completely cool, about 30 minutes and enjoy!

Hi – I’m Ben, a blogger, recipe developer, and food photographer. I’m glad you’re here! I hope you will enjoy hundreds of delicious recipes and a pinch of havoc in the kitchen.
Winner indeed! I wish you have happy 2025. !
Davorka recently posted…Banana Soup
I’m really glad you can use the vacuum packed chestnuts for this recipe. These would be for for Christmas!
I have not had chestnuts since we used to go to NYC and get them from a vendor roasted on the street cart when I was a young girl.. These sound amazing.
3 days from start to finish!? Now that’s an impressive recipe. I’d love to try that sometime. Fortunately in the meantime we have this much quicker recipe. This is great for the holidays – and the flavors are calling to me!!
David @ Spiced recently posted…Linzer Cookies
Thank you David!
Ben | Havocinthekitchen recently posted…Spruce Tea
These chestnuts sound delicious. And I’m all for knocking a three-day recipe down to 20 minutes!
Thank you Jeff!
Ben | Havocinthekitchen recently posted…Spruce Tea
They would make a fantastic snack!
angiesrecipes recently posted…Shkmeruli – Georgian Creamy Garlic Chicken
Thank you Angie!
Ben | Havocinthekitchen recently posted…Spruce Tea
What a lovely gift these would make!
Tandy (Lavender and Lime) recently posted…Rose Hip Cold Infusion
Thank you Tandy!
Ben | Havocinthekitchen recently posted…Spruce Tea