Easy Homemade Marzipan
Marzipan, the adult playdoh as I like to call it, is nothing but a thick pliable paste made of ground almonds. This is then molded into various shapes or incorporated into cakes and other baked goods. Loved by everyone but super expensive to buy. The solution to this is to make your own Marzipan. It is super quick to make and saves you a lot of money and once you taste homemade Marzipan, you won’t go back to store-bought Marzipan.
Generally, in India it is associated with Christmas celebrations in Goa and Mumbai. But, Germany is home to the world’s most famous Marzipan, the Lübecker Marzipan, from the city of Lübeck, in the northern regions of Germany. This city is home to the Niederegger Marzipan Museum.
The Most Famous Marzipan
The Niederegger Marzipan is the most famous among the Marzipan manufacturers in Lübeck. The quality requirements of Lübecker Marzipan are set higher than that of conventional Marzipan and are regulated by the RAL German Institute for Quality Assurance and Classification. To qualify as Lübecker Marzipan, the product must not contain more than 30% sugar and to qualify as the Lübecker Fine Marzipan, no more than 10% sugar is to be used. However, manufacturers like Niederegger have volunatrily set higher quality commitments with some classes of Marzipan with 100% almonds and no sugar.
History of the Marzipan
Although Marzipan is more famous in Germany and parts of Italy, it originated in the Orient, it was invented in the almond and sugar growing regions. A Persian physician named Rhazes, who lived between 850-923, in his book heaped praises about an almond and sugar mixture as a remedy for illnesses.
The Crusaders on their return from the Orien, brought with them various spices and oriental secrets. In the 13th century in the Italian regions, spices and confectionery were traded in little boxes called ‘mataban’. As time went by, the word came to be used for the box’s contents – mazapane (Italian), massepain (French) and marzipan (Deutsch).
Initially only pharmasicts were allowed to trade in sugar and spices until much later, a new profession confectioners was invented and they were allowed to manufacture marzipan. Marzipan was initially enjoyed by royalty and the well-to-do. Queen Elizabeth 1 of England is reported to have a sweet addiction, which led to coining of the term “royal indulgence”.
In the first half of the 19th century, it became readily available to the middle classes, due to the development of a method to extract sugar from sugar beet which made marzipan more affordable.
Marzipan recipe
The recipe I have for you is a simple and quick recipe. It doesn’t involve any cooking of the paste or addition of any egg whites. Just grind some almonds, make a syrup of sugar and honey over high heat till it boils. Take the ground almonds in a food processor and drizzle the sugar syrup while the food processor is running and blend until the mixture comes together as a smooth paste. The honey helps to preserve the Marzipan and gives it a distinct taste over store-bought Marzipan.
You can then cut it, shape it in anyway you please. The good thing with it is that you can always roll it back into a dough any number of times. The honey used in this recipe helps preserve the marzipan in the pantry for around a month. Just roll it into an air-tight log and leave it in the pantry. Done!
Like I said earlier, this can be shaped into different forms or used in cakes and baked goods. My favourite way of using it is in the famous German Christstollen
Marzipan
Ingredients
- 200 gms Sugar, granulated
- 4 tbsp Honey
- 2 tbsp Water
- 200 gms Almonds, ground
- 1 tsp Almond essence (optional)
Instructions
Making the Sugar Syrup:
- In a saucepan, heat the sugar, honey and water on high heat until the mixture boils and the sugar has dissolved completely
Blending the Ingredients:
- Take the ground almonds in a mixie/ food processor
- Add the sugar syrup little by little while the mixie is running
- Once all the syrup has been added, add the almond essence and continue to blend until the mixture comes together as marzipan
Shaping, Wrapping and Storing:
- When the marzipan is still warm, remove it onto a cling film ans roughly shape it into a log and wrap it and smoothen it into a cylinder
- Wrap it well and store it in your pantry
Notes
- When well wrapped and air-tight, marzipan keeps well upto a month without refrigeration
- If frozen, it can be stored for about 4 months