Turron de Almendra
(Almond Pastry)

Ingredients:

• 3 cups of almonds
• 6 egg whites
• 1 cup of honey
• 1 cup of granulated white sugar
• thin/sweet butter wafers – chocolate would work too

1. Boil the granulated sugar in ½ cup of water over medium heat, until it thickens slightly. Remove the pan from the heat; add the honey; and mix well.
2. Blanch the almonds in boiling water. Peel the skins from the almonds, toast them, and grind them finely. (OR – buy blanched, peeled, slivered almonds; then toast and grind them).
3. Beat the egg whites until stiff; add the ground almonds; and stir in the honey and sugar combination. Mix well.
4. Put the entire mixture over low heat; cook stirring constantly until it forms a ball when a small portion of the mixture is dropped in a cup of cold water (soft ball stage). (This takes approx. 20-25 minutes – be sure it’s low heat because the mixture is heavy and when it bubbles, it can spray the hot mixture upward toward your face.)
5. Line the bottom of a lightly greased 9x13 pan with wafers, then cover and fill with the paste. Cover the top of the paste with more wafers and let it dry for several days in a cool place. (VERY IMPORTANT – 3-4 days – as the mixtures needs to harden like fudge) OR – use individual wafers and make a turron sandwich. This may be easier as the turron is very sticky
6. Cut before serving if you lined the entire pan; this makes approximately 30 squares. OR – you’ll have approx. 18 – 2”x3” sandwiches, which should be cut in half as the turron is very rich.