Almond paste is made from ground

almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree native to Iran and surrounding countries, including the Levant. The almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree. Within the genu ...

s or

almond meal Almond meal, almond flour or ground almond is made from ground sweet almonds. Almond flour is usually made with blanched almonds (no skin), whereas almond meal can be made with whole or blanched almonds. The consistency is more like corn meal tha ...

and

sugar Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose, fructose, and galactose. Compound sugars, also called disaccharides or do ...

in equal quantities, with small amounts of

cooking oil Cooking oil is plant, animal, or synthetic liquid fat used in frying, baking, and other types of cooking. It is also used in food preparation and flavoring not involving heat, such as salad dressings and bread dips, and may be called edible oil ...

, beaten eggs, heavy cream or

corn syrup Corn syrup is a food syrup which is made from the starch of corn (called maize in many countries) and contains varying amounts of sugars: glucose, maltose and higher oligosaccharides, depending on the grade. Corn syrup is used in foods to soft ...

added as a binder. It is similar to ''

marzipan Marzipan is a confection consisting primarily of sugar, honey, and almond meal (ground almonds), sometimes augmented with almond oil or extract. It is often made into sweets; common uses are chocolate-covered marzipan and small marzipan imit ...

'', but has a coarser texture. Almond paste is used as a filling in

pastries Pastry is baked food made with a dough of flour, water and shortening (solid fats, including butter or lard) that may be savoury or sweetened. Sweetened pastries are often described as '' bakers' confectionery''. The word "pastries" suggest ...

, but it can also be found in

chocolate Chocolate is a food made from roasted and ground cacao seed kernels that is available as a liquid, solid, or paste, either on its own or as a flavoring agent in other foods. Cacao has been consumed in some form since at least the Olmec ci ...

s. In commercially manufactured almond paste,

ground Ground may refer to: Geology * Land, the surface of the Earth not covered by water * Soil, a mixture of clay, sand and organic matter present on the surface of the Earth Electricity * Ground (electricity), the reference point in an electrical c ...

apricot An apricot (, ) is a fruit, or the tree that bears the fruit, of several species in the genus '' Prunus''. Usually, an apricot is from the species '' P. armeniaca'', but the fruits of the other species in ''Prunus'' sect. ''Armeniaca'' are al ...

peach The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and cultivated in Zhejiang province of Eastern China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and others (the glossy-skinned, n ...

kernels are sometimes added to keep the cost down (also known as persipan).

Uses

Almond paste is used as a filling in pastries of many different cultures. It is a chief ingredient of the American

bear claw A bear claw is a sweet, yeast-raised pastry, a type of Danish, originating in the United States during the mid-1910's. In Denmark, a bear claw is referred to as ''kamme''.Roufs, Timothy G., and Kathleen Smyth Roufs''Sweet Treats around the Worl ...

pastry. In the Nordic countries almond paste is used extensively, in various pastries and cookies. In

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic countries, Nordic c ...

(where it is known as mandelmassa) it is used in biscuits, muffins and buns and as a filling in the traditional Shrove Tuesday pastry semla and is used in Easter and Christmas sweets. In Denmark (where it is known as marcipan or mandelmasse), almond paste is used in several pastries, for example as a filling in the Danish traditional pastry '' kringle''. In Finland almond paste (called ''mantelimassa'') is used in chocolate pralines and in the Finnish version of the Shrove Tuesday pastry laskiaispulla. In the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, almond paste (called ''amandelspijs'') is used in ''gevulde speculaas'' (stuffed brown-spiced biscuit) and banket. It is used as filling in the fruited Christmas bread ''

Kerststol Kerststol is a traditional Dutch oval-shaped fruited Christmas bread. The yeast-based bread contains dried fruits, raisins and currants, lemon and orange zest, water, milk, butter, sugar, vanilla and cinnamon. A more luxurious variety may incl ...

'', traditionally eaten at Christmas breakfast. In Germany, almond paste is also used in pastries and sweets. In the

German language German ( ) is a West Germanic language mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Italian province of South Tyrol. It is also a ...

, almond paste is known as Marzipanrohmasse and sold for example as ''Lübecker Edelmarzipan'', i.e. "high quality marzipan from Lübeck". Pesce di pasta di mandorle

Agnello pasquale pasta mandorle salentino

It Italy it's known as "pasta di mandorle". The soft paste is molded into creative shapes by pastry chefs which can be used as cake decorations or to make

frutta martorana (also ''frutta di Martorana'' or, in Sicilian, ) are traditional marzipan sweets, in the form of fruits and vegetables, from the provinces of Palermo and Messina, Sicily. Realistically coloured with vegetable dyes, they are said to have origi ...

. Almond paste is the main ingredient of French traditional '' calisson''

candy Candy, also called sweets (British English) or lollies (Australian English, New Zealand English), is a confection that features sugar as a principal ingredient. The category, called ''sugar confectionery'', encompasses any sweet confection, i ...

Aix-en-Provence Aix-en-Provence (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Ais de Provença in classical norm, or in Mistralian norm, ; la, Aquae Sextiae), or simply Aix ( medieval Occitan: ''Aics''), is a city and commune in southern France, about north of Marseille ...

. It is used as a filling in almond '' croissants''. In Turkey, almond paste is traditionally made in Edirne, once the capital of the Ottoman Empire. During the Ottoman era of Turkish history, it was a royal delight mostly used in palace. It is now sold at delight shops in Istanbul and Edirne.

References

Parsi Almond Fish
{{Portal bar, Food Almonds Food ingredients Food paste de:Marzipan#Marzipanrohmasse

Uses

See also

References