Friday, June 08, 2001


as promised, here's now the second, simplified, no-cook recipe for torrone. . .

you'll find it makes about 20 thin slices. do use the best quality ingredients for this:

4 oz. bittersweet chocolate (try the valrhona gran couva 64%), chopped small
1/4 c. unsalted Plugra/Keller's European Style butter
1 egg white
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 c. almonds or your favorite nut, ground coarsely in a food processor
5 tablespoons dried fruit, chopped small (optional)
1/4 c. unsalted sliced or slivered almonds, or your favorite nut, toasted

melt the bittersweet chocolate in a double boiler. or in the microwave, with the power on high, stirring every 30 seconds. attach the wire whisk to your stand mixer, and beat the egg white at speed 7 or 8 with the cream of tartar until stiff. with the whisk still attached, beat in the melted chocolate.

with a spatula, fold in the ground almonds, the toasted almonds, and the optional dried fruit. pour this mixture onto a large piece of baking parchment. fold the parchment around it and use the parchment to shape the mixture into a log or triangle. when you like the shape, twist the paper tightly around the mixture and chill in the fridge for at least an hour. voila!

if you like, you can make a nice fancy coating out of milk or white chocolate and more almonds:

6 oz. white or milk chocolate, chopped small
1 c. sliced almonds, toasted

melt the chocolate in the microwave or double boiler. take the now-chilled torrone out of the fridge and unwrap. with a knife or small spatula, quickly spread the melted chocolate over the torrone like icing. working fast, press the sliced almonds into the chocolate coating. chill again for another hour.

that's all there is to it! serve sliced thin with coffee for an excellent light dessert!

posted by fortune | 7:02 PM | top | link to this | email this: | | | 0 comments