Skin the chestnuts and cover with cold water, let them cook gently until
tender, when a large needle can be run through them easily. Drain and
drop them in cold water. After two hours drain again and put them in a
bowl, cover them with a rich syrup that has been skimmed and boiled
until clear. It must be boiling when poured over the chestnuts. Cover
the bowl with a heavy paper and let it stand for twelve hours, drain off
the syrup, bring it to the boiling point and turn it over the chestnuts
again and put away for another twelve hours. Repeat this process three
times, then drain the syrup off and the chestnuts are ready for use. Use
the large imported chestnuts, remove the shells and boil the nuts. The
brown skin can then be easily removed with a penknife. They are very
nice but very troublesome to prepare.