Marzipan

Category: Fillings > Marzipan

Marzipan has been around for a long time. It is a sweetened almond paste. Marzipan can be used to cover a cake, like fondant. If can be covered in chocolate and eaten as a candy or it can be a cake filling. However, probably the best known usage of marzipan is shaping and coloring it into little fruits and other sculptures which are then eaten.

Many people wonder what the difference between almond paste and marzipan is. Almond paste is just a paste made of almonds. Marzipan is almond paste which has had sugar and egg whites added to it. The only flavoring that is allowed in traditional marzipan is maybe a little rose water but a lot of modern marzipan has almond extract added to increase the flavor.

After you make marzipan, it will look and fill kind of like play dough.



You can add food coloring to make different colors. If you knead marzipan too much, it will become oily. This almost always happens as you mix the coloring into it. If it gets too oily, you can wipe off the oil with a paper towel. I suggest letting your marzipan sit in the refrigerator a little bit after you add the color before you shape it to help with the oil.

Marzipan sticks together well, so you don't need any adhesive when sculpting.







Recipe:

• 2/3 cup Water
  
• 2 cups Sugar
  
• 1/8 tsp. Cream of Tartar
  
• 4 cups Almond Meal
  
• 2 Egg Whites
  
• Powdered sugar for dusting
  

Sprinkle powdered sugar over a clean counter or work area where you will be kneading the marzipan. Fill a large pan with cold water. Make sure your pan is large enough that the pan you are cooking your marzipan in can fix it.

Place water and sugar is a large saucepan and heat on low until the sugar dissolves.
Add the cream of tartar and increase heat to medium. Bring to a boil and cover for 3 minutes. Uncover and boil until the temperature reaches 240 degrees on a candy thermometer.

Place the bottom of the saucepan in the cold water you’ve prepared, stirring the sugar mixture constantly until it becomes thick and creamy. Stir in the ground almonds and the egg whites, the place back over low heat and stir for 2 minutes more until the mixture is thick.

Place the marzipan onto your prepared work surface, and turn it with a metal spatula until it cools down enough to touch. Coat your hands in powdered sugar and begin to knead the marzipan, working it until it is smooth and pliant.

Your marzipan can now be used immediately or stored by wrapping it in plastic wrap and keeping it in an airtight container.