Marzipan

The Goan version of this delicious German sweet is made widely for Christmas and Easter; we of course substitute local cashew nuts for almonds. Marzipan is generally molded into seasonal shapes using silicon mold that will be available at your closest baking supplies retailer. You may also shape the dough into miniature fruits and paint them using food colour for some beautiful food art right out of your kitchen. This recipe makes a loaf of marzipan dough of approximately 500 gms.

Ingredients

250 gms finely ground cashew nut/almond meal

250 gms powdered sugar/confectioners’ sugar

1 tsp lime juice

1 tsp almond/rose extract+ 1/3 cup water

Method

Sieve the cashew nut/almond meal and sugar together. The finer the nut flour, the smoother the marzipan will be. In a small bowl, mix together the lemon juice, almond/rose extract, and water.
Then, start adding the liquid into the bowl of dry ingredients. Add one teaspoon at a time and then mix and check the consistency. Once combined it should look like a soft ball of dough. Do not over mix or the nut oils will be released which will make the marzipan oily. Wrap in Cling wrap and leave to rest for a while.  

You may colour this dough using edible food colour and mold it as per your choice. Store sealed well in an air tight container. The marzipan will stay in the refrigerator for several weeks.