This marzipan is easy and quick to make – and it’s vegan. The ratio of almond meal to sugar is 4:1 so it’s not overly sweet. Plus, there’s neither candy thermometre nor liquid glucose in sight.

Ingredients | Method

Ingredients

• 400 g almond meal
• 100 pure icing sugar, sifted to remove lumps
• 1 lemon, juiced*
• 1/3 cup boiling water*
• 1 tsp almond essence
• Cognac to taste – I use more than 30 ml but less than 60 ml
• 150 g melted dark chocolate – I used Lindt dark chocolate with almond flakes, but no flakes is also OK.

*The liquid you make for this recipe is enough for a double batch with some to spare.

Method

1. Empty the almond meal into a large bowl. Run your
fingers through it to break up any clumps.

2. Sieve icing sugar into the almond meal and mix it through with your hands.

3. Mix boiling water, lemon juice and almond essence in a cup.

4. Add a few tablespoons of the water mix to the dry ingredients and stir it through with a spoon. Keep adding water little-by-little until the mixture starts to come together. It becomes wet very quickly so if you want to add cognac, make sure the mix is crumbly – not a dough – but still beginning to stick together.

5. If you’re adding cognac, do it now, then mix the contents of the bowl to form a ball.

Form the mix into a pliable ball that you cut into eighths and roll into logs. The dough becomes wet quickly, so add liquid slowly, in small amounts.

6. Dust a large wooden board or your bench top with icing sugar and place the marzipan ball onto the surface. Cut it into four, and then four again.

7. Roll each portion into a log. You might find it useful to have a bowl off water on hand. When your hands get sticky, a bit off water can help when forming the logs. Dust more icing sugar onto your surface and onto the marzipan as you need to.

8. Place backing paper onto a flat oven tray.

9. Melt chocolate. I use a large plate with a slightly riased edge over a small pot of boiling water. The larger the plate, the easier it is to coat the marzipan.

10. Roll marzipan logs in the melted chocolate. Guide them using two butter knives. Transfer to the tray to set.

11. Serve with some decent coffee. Enjoy!