Autumn Street Snack · Roasted Chestnuts
Castagne
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Ticino's chestnut forests were historically so central to survival that the tree was nicknamed the 'bread tree' — chestnut flour stood in for grain in lean years.
Chestnuts are scored, roasted over open coals in a perforated pan, and sold hot in paper cones by street vendors, especially through autumn chestnut festivals. Ticino villages built around chestnut groves treat the harvest season as a genuine local event, not just a snack.
Why it's made this way: Chestnut cultivation was a subsistence backbone in Ticino's mountain villages for centuries, and roasting them street-side remains a seasonal ritual tied to that history.
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Part of World of Street Food — 690 dishes from 118 countries.
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