Calissons are a traditional French candy consisting of a smooth, pale yellow, homogeneous paste of candied fruit (especially melons and oranges) and ground almonds topped with a thin layer of

royal icing Royal icing is a hard white icing, made from softly beaten egg whites, icing sugar (powdered sugar), and sometimes lemon or lime juice. It is used to decorate Christmas cakes, wedding cakes, gingerbread houses, cookies and many other cakes an ...

. They have a texture similar to that of marzipan, but with a fruitier, distinctly melon-like flavour. They are often almond-shaped and are typically about five centimeters (two inches) in length. Calissons are traditionally associated with the town of Aix-en-Provence, France; consequently, most of the world's supply is still made in the

Provence Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bor ...

region.

History

The calisson is believed to have its origins in

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. Among the first known references to calissons was in Martino di Canale's ''Chronicle of the Venetians'' in 1275. An earlier 12th century text written in

Medieval Latin Medieval Latin was the form of Literary Latin used in Roman Catholic Western Europe during the Middle Ages. In this region it served as the primary written language, though local languages were also written to varying degrees. Latin functione ...

used the word ''calisone'' to refer to a cake made with almonds and flour. Yet another candy that is thought to be a relative of the modern calisson is ''kalitsounia'', which was made with marzipan, nuts, and spices such as cinnamon and cloves and was found in places occupied by the Venetians, such as

Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, ...

. Some trace the introduction of calissons to

around the mid-15th century at the second wedding of King

René of Anjou René of Anjou ( it, Renato; oc, Rainièr; ca, Renat; 1409–1480) was Duke of Anjou and Count of Provence from 1434 to 1480, who also reigned as King of Naples as René I from 1435 to 1442 (then deposed as the preceding dynasty was restored t ...

. Others suggest that it was not introduced in its modern form until the 16th century, as this was when almonds became an established crop in Aix-en-Provence.

Protected Geographical Indication (PGI)

The calisson status has been protected in France since 1991 which means that local manufacturers need to follow strict methods to make them and that only applies in France. During 14 years, the French Union of Calisson makers were not able to get the international rights over the calisson as they could not agree on the exact ingredients of the recipe. To prevent foreign companies from using the ''Calisson d'Aix'' name, the union applied for the Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) in 2015 but it was already too late. In 2016, the French Union makers started a long legal battle with a Chinese company who had already trademarked the candy in China under the "Kalisong" designation. In 2017 the French union finally won and blocked the Chinese trademark registration.

References

External links

Calissons - Aix en Provence, Aix en Provence Office de Tourisme

Le Roy René, producer of calisson
Aix-en-Provence Almonds Occitan desserts French desserts French confectionery {{confectionery-stub