Easy Marzipan Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the marzipan rule? ›

In a danish "pure raw marzipan" the marzipan must consist of at least 60% almonds according to danish law. The rest is sugar and water. There are some recipes online with 50/50 sugar and almonds. But that is far too sweet for a danish marzipan.

Almond paste has twice the amount of almonds in it compared to marzipan, making it coarser in texture and less sweet than its counterpart. Their consistency also differs as marzipan is smooth and pliable, almost clay-like, while almond paste is somewhat gritty and spreadable, almost like a cookie dough.

If this is the case a good substitute for marzipan is a thin layer of sugarpaste and then cover as normal. Let the first covering dry before applying the second cover. You could also use half chocolate modelling paste and half sugarpaste kneaded together.

Also called almond candy dough, marzipan is an agreeable, multi-purpose combo of the first two, with a subtle almond flavor and unmatched malleability. Be sure to try these marzipan cake recipes.

Not many Americans have been exposed to marzipan. Most that have have been exposed to the southern European style which has much more sugar (60:40 sugar:almond or more) and doesn't taste all that great. Also, a lot of it is imported and by the time it gets to the US it's stale.

The videos below give great tips on how to trim it neatly and create the perfect base for icing your Christmas cake. Leave the Christmas cake covered in marzipan in a cool, dry place. Allow it to dry for at least 24 hours before covering with fondant icing, and at least two days before covering with royal icing.

Marzipan comes from nuts—it's traditionally made with ground almonds. In order to maintain quality standards, many countries regulate the percentage of almonds a recipe must have for it to be legally called "marzipan." This discourages the use of apricot kernels as a cheap substitute for almonds.

The World's Finest Marzipan

Lubeca has been producing marzipan since 1904. The company continues to use traditional methods of production and is recognized by bakers, pastry chefs and chocolatiers as one of the leading producers of high quality almond paste marzipan.

Marzipan and almond paste are made from ground almonds and sugar but differ mainly in texture, sweetness, and use. Almond paste is coarser, less sweet, and used as a filling in baked goods. Marzipan is smoother, sweeter, and often used for decorative purposes in confectionery, such as cake covering and sculpting.

The German name 'marzipan' has supplanted the original English name 'marchpane. ' Some theorise that it originally comes from the Latin 'martius panis', or 'March bread'. Others cite Arabic, Burmese, or Persian as the language of origin.

Do you put jam between marzipan and icing? ›

Always cover a fruitcake with marzipan before covering it with fondant or royal icing to keep moisture in the cake and stop oils from seeping into the outside covering and causing discolouration. If you are covering a fruitcake with marzipan, use boiled, sieved apricot jam to stick it to the cake not buttercream.

I'm old school and was taught to use a apricot jam as it is the same colour as marzipan and, it also compliments the flavours of fruit cake. If you use strawberry jam, thin it out with water and gently heat it in the microwave preferably until it boils. This is to kill off any microbes in the jam.

Even after he was told that raw bitter almonds contained a form of cyanide and were illegal in the Unites States, Schrade was fascinated. “I thought, 'European chefs make good use of bitter almonds for cooking and baking--why shouldn't we? '” he says.

The best quality marzipan contains less sugar in the raw mix. Good marzipan contains minerals such calcium, potassium and magnesium and is also rich in vitamin B and polyunsaturated fatty acids. On the downside, marzipan is high in fat and in sugar.

Lübeck Marzipan (German: Lübecker Marzipan) refers to marzipan originating from the city of Lübeck in northern Germany and has been protected by an EU Council Directive as a “Protected Geographical Indication” (PGI) since 1996.

This expression goes back to the medieval times when a farmer who had a lot of pigs that year was really lucky. When you give someone a marzipan pig, you are wishing him or her good luck for the next year. If you find an almond in your traditional Christmas porridge, you might get a marzipan pig for a prize.

The traditional layer of marzipan on a cake helps to keep the cake moist by trapping in moisture which in turn stops it from going stale. It also provides a smooth surface for your final icing covering.

Cover the cake with marzipan and then if possible let the cake stand for 24 to 48 hours so that surface of the marzipan can dry out. This gives a firmer surface for icing but also reduces the risk of any of the oils from almonds in the marzipan staining the white icing.

Hi, in Nigella Christmas, the Christmas Cake recipe has several make ahead tips. One of them is to marzipan the cake a week earlier than icing it. The tip notes that the marzipan should be left to dry out, so it doesn't seep into the icing.