Homemade Torrone Recipe • theVintageMixer.com

Homemade Torrone Recipe

Written by Becky

One of my close friends, upon tasting Muhammara (a Lebanese spread) for the first time, proclaimed… “this, this is what I’ve been missing my whole life!”  That’s exactly how I felt when I tasted Italian Torrone for the first time.  I was given a gift of a log or bar (however you want to call it) of torrone candy right before Halloween and I just couldn’t get over it, still can’t.  This is absolutely the best candy I’ve tasted and I’m just so glad to have discovered it.

Homemade Torrone Recipe • theVintageMixer.com #holidaygifts #ediblegifts #candy

Once I tasted it, I knew I wanted to try and make this at home for some holiday gifts. So, my friend Annalise, who is way more of a pro than me, came and we stirred and stirred until our beautiful white torrone was ready. Once it set, I sliced the bars then wrapped them in parchment, using my friend Ana’s cute packaging for the perfect finishing touches.

Homemade Torrone Recipe • theVintageMixer.com #holidaygifts #ediblegifts #candy

Torrone is a all natural nougat candy. One of the best things about it is the simplicity and purity of the ingredients, no processed additions just honey, egg whites, and nuts.  The torrone I first tasted comes form a company out of New York, Torrone.co. They are putting their spin on the Italian treat.  I based my recipe on their ingredient list but decided to go for a more traditional Italian style torrone and forgo adding any sugar so this recipe is short and sweet – honey, egg whites, and nuts. Plus a little salt and vanilla but you can skip that too if you’d like.  All you really need is those three ingredients and some time over the stove to stir.

Homemade Torrone Recipe • theVintageMixer.com #ediblegifts #homemadecandy

How did my homemade version line up with the torrone I first tasted?!  Mine was thinner, slightly harder and a little less sweet. I definitely won’t stop buying the real deal from Torrone but it was also a lot of fun to make it at home and we enjoyed every little bite that didn’t make it into our gifts.  Torrone makes a perfect edible gift whether you spend the time to make this at home or if you buy some online.

Torrone is best made with good company in the kitchen.  Alternatively, good music, or just some quiet brainless time of stirring is also a good pairing for the job!

Homemade Torrone Recipe • theVintageMixer.com #ediblegifts #homemadecandy

Here are some packaging ideas for edible gifts from my friend Ana over at Welovecitrus:

•parchments paper and brown craft boxes make for a great blank canvas to start you packaging
•use colorful string or tape and small thoughtful labels
•small trees and pinecones are a fun added touch, also tiny herbs or greenery can go a long way
•use thin wire or small clothes pins to attach labels
check out welovecitrus on instagram for more packaging ideas

Homemade Torrone Recipe • theVintageMixer.com

Homemade Torrone Recipe

A traditional recipe for homemade Italian torrone, great for the holiday treats or gifts.
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 15 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Course Dessert, Snack
Cuisine Italian
Servings 4 bars or logs of torrone

Ingredients
  

  • 1/2 pound of honey, use a high grade Italian honey for best results
  • 2 large egg whites
  • 1/2 pound of nuts, I use a mixture of almonds, hazelnuts, and pistachios
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, I used a white vanilla extract for this

Instructions
 

  • Cover a loaf pan or small square baking dish (8 inch by 8 inch) with parchment paper. Have another sheet of parchment paper ready to cover the top of the torrone once its done cooking.
  • Place the nuts on a single layer in a baking tray and toast in oven at 350º F, about 8 minutes or until shiny and fragrant. Set aside.
  • Place honey in a double boiler or large bowl over a saucepan of water (bain marie) on the lowest heat. Make sure the bowl is not touching the water. Heat honey until it melts, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon.
  • In the meantime, whisk egg whites to stiff peaks in a separate bowl.
  • Add the whites to the bowl of honey, stirring with the wooden spoon to incorporate. It should turn into a caramel-coloured cream. Keep cooking, stirring slowly but continuously over gentle heat for 45 minutes (It's best to just set a timer for this). The mixture should thicken and become pale. A small test should determine that your torrone is at a good stage – a drop of the mixture in a glass of water should solidify into a soft ball, not dissolve immediately.
  • Add the nuts, salt and vanilla to the mixture and continue cooking and stirring for 30 minutes(set the timer again so you make sure to cook for the full 30 minutes). Pour into your prepared baking dish. Top with additional parchment and smooth it down, pressing the torrone gently with your hands.
  • Place in a cool place to set for a couple of hours. When set, cut the torrone into thick slices with a sharp, heavy knife. Wrap in parchment tie with string or tape for the perfect homemade holiday gift. Keeps very well wrapped in parchment and stored somewhere cool.

To purchase Torrone go to Torrone.co

For cute packaging sets including tags and twine go to welovecitrus

Comments (22)

  1. My mom and her sister hand dip chocolates every year to give to our neighbors and friends at Thanksgiving to show our appreciation for everything they do for us throughout the year. One of their most popular centers is their french almond honey nougat. The recipe is very similar to this, minus the pistachios and hazelnuts. Nougat day is the best because we usually have 4 or 5 people in the kitchen chopping nuts, taking turns stirring, and prepping batches for dipping. I can’t see Nougat or Torrone without thinking of it.

  2. Stirring continuously for 45 minutes? I’d love to make this recipe, but who’s got time for that? 🙂 (I’ve made torrone before, but sworn never to do it again because of the sticky mess. This recipe seems simpler? Or am I just fooling myself?)

  3. Holiday time for my family took us to our local Italian market to buy torrone in neat little boxes. The baking time was spent on traditional cookies and fried dough, sadly, no candy!

  4. Hi Becky
    All my life I have loved Nougat (I was brought up in England) and not until a trip to Tuscany had I had Torrone (a crunchy version)! Recently a local store had Torrone so I bought some but once opened it got sticky and that is why I’m hesitant to make it! I don’t know where you are based, I am in SW Florida so obviously we have humidity issues! Any tips?

    • I’m honestly unsure about the affects of humidity but I will say that with any candy making you really need to make sure and get to the exact temperature before removing it from the heat. The texture of the torrone will change dramatically when its not cooked long enough or if its over cooked. I hope that helps! My version is definitely more hard than sticky.

  5. Is the honey in a solid form? I’ve only seen jars of honey that are liquid. Where do you get honey that you have to melt?

  6. Hi there! How long would you say these last? I’d like to make them ahead for Christmas gifts, and was just wondering how early I could make them.

    • I haven’t tried short cutting it in the microwave and would be nervous to do so with the egg whites. I usually like to use roasted nuts to boost the flavor a bit.

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