Chinese Chestnut Sponge Cake

I made this chestnut sponge cake as a birthday cake for my mum since she really likes chestnuts. 
I wasn't able to source fresh chestnuts for this recipe so I used frozen instead- it was more convenient anyways since the chestnuts had been peeled already. The roasted chestnuts that I'm referring to in the recipe are the ready to eat ones that are packaged and usually found in Asian food shops. They add some sweetness to the chestnut filling but if you don't have any, just use 450g frozen chestnuts and add a bit more sugar when making the filling. Have a good long weekend!

Ingredients

1x Chiffon cake base, cut into 2 even layers
Click here for the Chiffon Cake Base recipe

Filling

400g frozen chestnuts, peeled
50g roasted peeled chestnuts
½ cup caster sugar
½ cup water (preferably water used in cooking chestnuts)
½ tsp vanilla essence
1½ tbsp butter, melted
2 tbsp milk

Decorating

3 tbsp icing sugar
300ml thickend cream
200g strawberries, thinly sliced
10 roasted peeled chestnuts

Method

1. Place frozen chestnuts in a saucepan and add enough water to cover them. Cook until soft. Drain, reserving the water.
2. In a bowl, combine sugar with chestnut water or plain water and stir until dissolved.
3. Place chestnuts, sugar water, melted butter, vanilla essence and milk into a bowl of a food processor and mix until a smooth paste consistency forms.
4. Whip thickened cream in a clean mixing bowl. Add in icing sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time until stiff peaks form.
5. Spread a thin layer of whipped cream on one half of the cake layer.
6. Spread a layer of chestnut filling onto cake layer with whipped cream. Place the other half of cake over the chestnut filling, then top again with some more whipped cream.
7. Cover entire cake with whipped cream, then pile remaining chestnut filling on top of cake. (I forced the chestnut filling through a spoon with round slits to create the pile of strands seen in the photo. You can also use a potato masher too for the same effect).
8. Place the remaining cream in a piping bag fitted with a 1cm fluted nozzle and pipe rosettes around the edge of cake.
9. Arrange chestnuts around the cake, either in between the cream rosettes or on top of each second cream rosette. 
10. Place sliced strawberries around the bottom edge of cake, with the pointy end facing up.
11. Cut the cake into wedges to serve.