Throughout Europe, marzipan is closely tied to Christmas and New Year celebrations. This is surprising to many Americans; marzipan is virtually unheard-of here, which is a real shame. (I guess we are too busy eating Twinkies and crappy low-grade milk chocolate to enjoy things like marzipan.)
It's not clear when or how marzipan became associated with Christmas. Perhaps it's simply because marzipan tends to be expensive, and thus has been considered a special treat. Marzipan is made with sugar and ground almond flour, and particularly in the past, the high cost of almonds has made marzipan a costly indulgence.
In southern Europe (including Italy, Portugal, and Greece) marzipan is usually pressed into shapes and colored. Marzipan fruits are the best example of this, and are a classic Italian Christmas treat.
By comparison, in northern Europe (including Germany, Norway, and Sweden) marzipan is often either formed into a bar and dipped in chocolate, or incorporated into baking. Fruit cakes often have a layer of marzipan coating, marzipan is baked into stollen, and small cakes may have a marzipan filling.
The marzipan pig is the most baffling and adorable marzipan tradition. Marzipan pigs are given as Christmas and New Year's gifts, and are considered lucky. I don't know why a pig, or why marzipan, but I love this tradition. (There is a children's book called The Marzipan Pig, but it was published in the mid-1980s, whereas the tradition of the marzipan pig goes back centuries.)
If you want to try marzipan in America, your choices are limited:
- You can order online, of course, although the shipping can cost a small fortune.
- Many upscale stores carry a collection of Ritter Sport chocolate bars. Look for their dark chocolate marzipan bar, which is delicious and has a bright red wrapper.
- The only reliable source for marzipan pigs that I have found so far, at least in the Pacific Northwest, is Cost Plus Imports stores. But be warned: the crowds at that store during the holiday season can be brutal.
Image courtesy Flickr/aurelien
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