Marzipan!
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Among the rows of our beloved Leonidas Belgian Chocolates, we also carry many European confections including marzipan.
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Marzipan is a sweet that comes primarily from nuts, specifically made out of ground almonds and sugar. While marzipan is not such a common treat in the United States, it is very common in many places around the world including Germany, France, Portugal and Spain just to name a few. Around the globe, marzipan is a popular confection altered in various countries to replace almonds. For instance in Latin America, a popular treat similar to marzipan replaces the almonds with peanuts and is called "mazapan." In Mexico, pine nuts and pistachios are substitutes while in the Middle East, marzipan is usually flavored with orange-flower water.
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The invention of marzipan is hard to pinpoint, but many historians link it back to Lübeck, Germany. Legend has it that during a 15th century famine when flour used for making bread became scarce, the senate of Lübeck ordered bakers to create a replacement. Using eggs, sugar, and stores of almonds, the clever bakers came up with marzipan. However, cities like Venice, Florence, Konigsberg and many more claim to have invented marzipan and shared similar stories with different dates, making it difficult to determine the origin of the sweet confection.
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We love marzipan at Love + Chocolate and always have plenty on hand in all kinds of fun shapes for every season! Kristy really loves it because her family got hooked on marzipan when they had a German exchange student live with them when she was a kid. The families became very close and she still talks about the amazing gifts of chocolate and marzipan they received at Christmas for many years from their adopted German family.
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In Germany and throughout much of northern Europe it is considered good luck to receive a marzipan pig on Christmas or New Year's Day. At Love + Chocolate we always make sure to have these cute little piggies on hand in the early part of the year (you can see them in the photo above on the far left side with little pennies inserted for good luck!)
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At Love + Chocolate shop, our marzipan is hand-crafted by Beate, an incredible craftswoman originally from Germany who uses traditional techniques. She has perfected the recipe and created a rich, yet light and airy texture with just the right amount of sweetness. Beautifully hand-colored with food-safe, natural food coloring, they look amazing on a dessert plate and they are absolutely delicious.
Fair warning -- try this marzipan once, and (like Kristy) you might be addicted for life!
For more information and great photos of marzipan, be sure to visit our Pinterest board! You can follow us there for lots of fun sweet treat pictures and recipes!
We hope to see you in the store or online soon!
Thanks for your business,
- Kent, Kristy and the girls
