Mont-blanc aux marrons

Method

1. 1 Beat the egg whites with powdered sugar until stiff peaks form, then pipe the mixture into small round discs on a baking tray.
2. 2 Bake the egg whites at 100 degrees for 90 minutes until they are completely dry and crispy, not hot.
3. 3 The heat must be low and long; if baked at high temperatures, the surface will crack and turn golden brown while the inside remains sticky.
4. 4 Boil the chestnuts, then peel off both the hard shell and the brown inner skin; the inner skin is bitter cream.
5. 5 Grind chestnuts with milk, butter, rum, and vanilla until a thick cream is formed, then press it through a perforated mold to create strands.
6. 6 Whip the cream into a peak on the cake plate, then sprinkle chestnut strands around the peak to resemble a snow mountain.

With an appliance

• Air fryer 1 hr

  Replace step 2: spray an extremely thin layer of oil onto the parchment paper, bake the egg white discs in a 115-degree hot air oven for 58 minutes, and rotate the tray after 29 minutes; the meringue dries quickly, do not flip, and divide into batches.