ITALIAN ALMOND NOUGAT 

YOU WILL NEED :

• 2 cups sugar 

• 1 cup liquid glucose 

• ½ cup honey 

• ½ teaspoon salt 

• ½ cup water 

• 2 medium egg whites 

• 1 teaspoon vanilla 

• 125g ( 4 oz ) butter 

• 60g ( 2 oz ) whole blanched almonds To toast almonds: Put on an oven tray, and bake in a moderate oven for 5 minutes, until golden; cool Note: If wished, 

• 125g ( 4 oz ) Turkish Delight - the kind you can buy at confectionery counters can be chopped and folded in when stirring in the almonds. This gives the pretty pink squares in the picture. 

ITALIAN ALMOND NOUGAT RECIPE:

Have butter at room temperature. Put sugar, liquid glucose, honey, salt, and water in a pan, and stir over low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to boil, and cook until the mixture forms a hard ball when tested in a small amount of water ( 126C or 260F on a sweets thermometer ), approximately 8 minutes. 

 Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Pour one-quarter of the hot syrup in a thin stream over the egg whites, beating constantly

Continue beating until the mixture is thick enough to hold its shape, approximately 3 to 5 minutes; the picture shows the consistency of egg - the white mixture. Cook remaining syrup until a small amount of syrup forms brittle threads when dropped in cold water ( 154C or 310F on a sweets thermometer ), approximately 5 minutes. Pour the remainder of the hot syrup over the meringue in a thin stream, beating constantly until the mixture is very thick. 

Add vanilla and roughly chopped butter. Beat until thick again, about 5 minutes. With a wooden spoon, stir in toasted almonds. Turn mixture into greased 28cm x 18cm ( 11in x 7in ) lamington tin, smooth top with a spatula. Refrigerate until firm. Loosen the edge of the nougat all around, and turn out in a large block. With a sharp knife, cut into 4cm x 2.5cm ( 1 % in x 1in ) or larger pieces. Wrap each piece individually in cellulose paper or waxed paper. Store in the refrigerator.

 Makes about 1kg ( 2lb )

Also Read: ITALIAN CROSTINI