How to Make Turron de Alicante y Jijona

Makes: 2 tablets, each of 500 gms

Preparation time: 30 mins + 3 days (inactive)

Cooking time: 15 mins

Ingredients needed to make turron de alicante y jijona:

For the turron de jijona (soft nougat):

• 14 oz honey
• 7 oz sugar
• 10 oz almonds
• Freshly grated lemon zest, as required
• 1 egg white
• Dash of ground cinnmon

For the turron de alicante (hard nougat):

• 10 oz honey
• 22 oz toasted almonds
• 14 oz sugar
• 2 egg whites
• 4 drops aniseed extract
• 1 package wafers

Cooking instructions for turron de alicante y jijona:

To make turron de jijona:

• Spread the almonds in a lightly oiled baking sheet and toast them in the oven at 210 degrees F, until they are golden brown.
• Transfer the almonds in batches to a blender and grind them into fine powder.
• Whisk the egg white briskly until they form soft peaks and set aside.
• Pour honey into a frying pan and stir in the sugar.
• Heat the mixture over moderate heat while stirring it with a wooden spatula until the sugar dissolves and forms a thick syrup.
• Remove the syrup from heat and fold in the whisked egg white.
• Blend the mixture properly until it is free of any lumps and turns into a lighter tone; it will take about 10 minutes.
• Sprinkle  a dash of cinnamon on the mixture and stir them well together along with the lemon zest.
• Add the ground almonds and stir well until it is distributed uniformly throughout the mixture.
• Line a container with parchment paper and pour the above mixture into it.
• Keep a weight on top of the container to keep it well pressed and start making the harder nougat.
• Set the nougat aside for few days until set.

To make turron de alicante:

• Beat the egg whites until they form soft peaks.
• Stir sugar into a saucepan of sugar and heat it until the latter dissolves.
• Bring the mixture to boil and reduce to a simmer before continuing to cook it until it thickens into a semi-thick syrup.
• Pour honey into a separate saucepan and heat it before stirring into the syrup; the syrup should be removed from heat at this point.
• Chop the almonds and add a few drops of aniseed extract; toss well to mix.
• Stir it into the egg whites and pour in the syrup-honey mixture.
• Fold them into a uniform mixture and set aside.
• Line a square cake pan with parchment paper and arrange the wafers on the bottom.
• Pour the nougat mixture into the lined mold and level the surface with a spatula.
• Place a weight on top to press it firmly and set aside for a few days until set.
• Chop the nougats with a sharp knife into small squares and store them in an air-tight container.

Image credit: Wikimedia Commons