After being full of roasted chestnut, I wondered what else I can try to make from this seasonal ingredient? There are many interesting dishes, and one of those is Korean Chestnut Cookies (Yul-lan). They are a small, lovely no-bake dessert made from chestnut powder, a bit of cinnamon powder and honey. Moreover, you are free to be creative with various toppings on them, from cacao powder, matcha powder to sesame and crushed nuts.
One more thing which made me be in love with Korean Chestnut Cookies is the low amount of sweetener. Instead of mixing sugar into the dough, honey is used, with a small amount. It helps to keep the original taste of chestnut while still adding-in the pleasant fragrance and sweetness of honey, cinnamon, and other toppings. Let’s learn more about it and the making process below.
Origins of Korean Chestnut Cookies
Yul-ran (율란) is a type of traditional Korean treat known as suksilgwa. This is a confectionary crafted by cooking fruits and nuts, and then molding them into shapes that often resemble their original ingredients. Originally, this dessert, like French Chestnut Candies, was exclusively reserved for the elite and royalty during the Joseon dynasty (1392 to 1897). Nowadays, everyone can give it a try easily in every season. Chestnut cookie can perfectly go along with a cup of hot tea, coffee or chocolate.
Ingredients
Because this was the first time I tried to make this type of cookies, I started with a small portion to make 9 cookies, enough for a homemade cookies box. The ingredients, as I mentioned, are very simple, but it will take you some time to transform chestnuts to chestnut powder.
- Chestnut: Roasted, steamed or boiled chestnuts then will be crushed and sifted through a strainer to get the smooth and light chestnut powder. I used around 120 peeled chestnuts, pounded with a pestle and got around 100g (1/2 cup) of powder. There were still some uncrushed chestnut pieces, so I added them into my Chestnut Rice.
- Honey: You’ll need 25-30g (2 tbsp) honey per 100g (1/2 cup) chestnut powder. It will act as a glue to combine the powder into a dough and prevent it from cracking.
- Cinnamon powder: The powder adds a hint of earthy and warm flavor to our cookies. It’s the perfect match with chestnut, especially in winter when we need to warm up our body.
- Toppings: There are many things to try adding more flavors to the Korean Chestnut Cookies. I picked all available toppings at home, from white sesame, crushed peanut to cacao and Matcha Powder. Crushed hazelnut, almond, walnut, etc. are all great to try.
Equipment
To make chestnut cookies, you may need several kitchen utensils. Please preapre:
- A Strainer
- Pestle and Mortar, or
- A Blender
- A sharp knife or Chestnut Clip to score the nuts before roasting or boiling.
How to make Korean Chestnut Cookies
There are three steps to make this special cookie. First, you’ll have to make a fine chestnut powder; then, add cinnamon and honey mixture in, mix them well and shape into lovely small chestnut cookies. Finally, top with your favorite toppings.
Making Chestnut powder
First, you need to cook chestnuts by either roasting, boiling or steaming. Refer to this article: how to cook chestnuts for a detail instruction. In general, follow these steps:
- Wash chestnuts and remove damaged ones. Score chestnuts by a sharp knife or chestnut clip. Then, bake at 400F (200C) or boil them in 15 minutes. To steam chestnuts, steam in 20-25 minutes. Peel the brown skins to reveal the nuts inside.
- Add peeled chestnuts to a mortar and use pestle to pound them as finely as possible. You can also use a blender to do that. Then, set a bowl below, and sift the pounded nuts through a strainer to get the fine powder dropping to the bowl.
The whole process takes 30-40 minutes from fresh chestnuts to powder. You’ll need 100g (1/2 cup) chestnut powder for 8-10 cookies.
Making Chestnut Cookie Dough
- Mix 3-4g cinnamon powder with 25-30g (2 tbsp) honey, until you get a shiny brown liquid. The more cinnamon powder, the browner your Korean Chestnut cookies are.
- Pour all the honey & cinnamon mixture to the bowl of chestnut powder. Stir evenly and use hand to combine all of them into a big dough.
Shaping Cookies and add toppings
- From a big dough, take 15g (1 tbsp) of the dough to shape into a chestnut-shaped cookie. Hold the dough tightly with the palm of your hand and gently form it. Beside chestnut shape, you can try everything else like a cat, a pig… but chestnut shape seems to be the easiest one.
- Finally, dip the head of each cookie into honey to make it stick to toppings. Then, dip into your favorite topping evenly so that topping can coat the cookie well.
Repeat until finishing the dough. Now you have Korean Chestnut Cookie ready for an afternoon tea.
Store Chestnut Cookies
Chestnut Cookies are easy to be broken because they are stick together with honey. Therefore, when you store it, remember to leave each piece separately, don’t overcrowd. It’s best to have cupcake liners to hold each cookie.
Store cookies in fridge are required to keep them last longer. Consume Korean Chestnut Cookies in up to 3 days. If you leave them at room temperature, you should eat them all in a day or so.
Enjoy your lovely cookies!
Korean Chestnut Cookies (Yul-ran)
Korean Chestnut Cookies (Yul-ran) are a small, lovely no-bake dessert made from chestnut powder, a bit of cinnamon powder and honey.
Ingredients
Cookie Dough
- 130g (4.5 oz) chestnuts
- 30g (2 tbsp) honey
- 3-4g (1 tsp) cinnamon powder
Toppings
- 15g (1 tbsp) honey
- 1 tsp matcha powder
- 1 tsp cacao powder
- 1 tbsp peanuts
- 1 tsp white sesame
Instructions
Making Chestnut powder
First, you need to cook chestnuts by either roasting, boiling or steaming. Refer to this article: how to cook chestnuts for a detail instruction. In general, follow these steps:
- Wash chestnuts and remove damaged ones. Score chestnuts by a sharp knife or chestnut clip. Then, bake at 400F (200C) or boil them in 15 minutes. To steam chestnuts, steam in 20-25 minutes. Peel the brown skins to reveal the nuts inside.
- Add peeled chestnuts to a mortar and use pestle to pound them as finely as possible. You can also use a blender to do that. Then, set a bowl below, and sift the pounded nuts through a strainer to get the fine powder dropping to the bowl.
The whole process lasts 30-40 minutes from fresh chestnuts to powder.
Making Chestnut Cookie Dough
- Mix cinnamon powder with honey until you get a shiny brown liquid. The more cinnamon powder, the browner your Korean Chestnut cookies are.
- Pour all the honey & cinnamon mixture to the bowl of chestnut powder. Stir evenly and use hand to combine all of them into a big dough.
Shaping Cookies and add Toppings
- From a big dough, take 15g (1 tbsp) of the dough to shape into a chestnut-shaped cookie. Hold the dough tightly with the palm of your hand and gently form it. Beside chestnut shape, you can try everything else like a cat, a pig… but chestnut shape seems to be the easiest one.
- Finally, dip the head of each cookie into honey to make it stick to toppings. Then, dip into your favorite topping evenly so that topping can coat the cookie well.
Repeat until finishing the dough. Now you have Korean Chestnut Cookie ready for an afternoon tea. 
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 2 Serving Size: 4-5 cookiesAmount Per Serving: Calories: 215
Other Chestnut Recipes
Beside Korean Chestnut Cookies, you can also try:
