Crystallized Honey Marzipan

Marzipan is a divine German delicacy firmly fixed in holiday traditions. For those of you who are not familiar with this European confectionery, traditional Marzipan is the exquisite combination of ground, blanched almonds, powdered sugar & rose water.

Marzipan is used for a multitude of delicious things including chocolate dipped marzipan candies, wrapping cakes, flavouring cookies, sculpting holiday fruits, making adorable mushrooms for yule log cakes and of course, the filling for stollen - the most famous of Christmas cakes!

I have always had a sweet tooth. In fact, in another life, I even pursued a career as a dessert chef. BUT shortly after graduating from pastry design school and landing a job in a swanky Halifax kitchen, the health of some beloved family members began to deteriorate. The culprits were complications associated with long term obesity and type II diabetes.

This sent me down a road of reflection. What was I contributing to the world with “dessert” as my purpose? Ultimately, this soul searching propelled me on a path that would lead to homesteading & Incredible Seeds.  Attending the Canadian School of Natural Nutrition was a full turnabout from a career in pastry arts. I learned many things but there was one, big takeaway:

Eat whole foods.

I saw many of my own, minor ailments vanish with this one, simple rule of thumb. Whole foods are foods that are as close to their complete and natural form as possible. Fresh. Unprocessed. Unrefined. With their balanced, nutritional make up intact.

I love holiday traditions and I still love sweets. These days I take family favourites & remaster them as nutrient dense desserts.  And here’s where the marzipan come in.

My preamble is more  of a disclaimer…

Purists be warned: No powdered sugar here.

This is not your Oma’s marzipan, but it is damn good!

Ingredients & Tools

• 2 cups whole, raw almonds, skins on
• 1 cup raw, unfiltered, crystallized honey
• 2 tsps homemade rose water or organic almond extract
• Coffee grinder
• Medium sized bowl
• Firm spatula or wooden spoon
• Sieve
• **If you have a Kitchen Aid mixer, I think a dough hook would be helpful to mix this.

My marzipan is made from freshly ground, whole almonds, local unfiltered crystallized honey and organic almond extract (I did not get around to harvesting rose petals this Summer, oops!)

Grinding your own almonds, with the skins on, will ensure that you have an optimum almond flavour and nutrient content. The longer a flour or meal sits after being ground - and this is true for all flours - the more quickly it’s nutrients break down so the fresh is best!

Honey is an amazing whole food! Yes, it is sweet and if you are living with diabetes or hypoglycemia, it should maybe be avoided. But did you know raw, unfiltered honey has a complete vitamin and mineral complex, contains all the necessary amino acids (making it a complete protein food) AND has many antimicrobial properties? With this recipe, it is important to use crystallized honey. It is the perfect texture for marzipan!

Raw honey is in stark contrast to the highly refined conventional sugar. In the quest for that pure white sugar, all nutrients have been stripped away. Chances are that if it has not been advertised as “cane sugar” or “organic sugar,” the sugar you’re using has been made from genetically engineered sugar beets, meaning very high pesticide/herbicide exposure.Yuck! All things aside, the holiday season can be stressful enough without the behavioural mood swings brought on by refined sugar.

Method

1. Working in 1/2 cup amounts, grind the almonds into a fine powder. They will not all grind down at the same speed so sift your almond meal as you go. Don’t let it grind too long or you might end up with almond butter! Set aside.

2. Combine the honey and rosewater/organic almond extract.

3.Patiently fold the almond meal and honey together. I say patiently because at first it always seems very dry and that you will need more more honey. You don’t!

4. Kneed the marzipan until its has been thoroughly mixed.

5. All done! Now you can create your favourite marzipan treats!