Traditional Calabrese torrone
This morning I am waiting for my friend Ursula to visit. There are almonds that I roasted on the table. We will enjoy some tea and panettone, but I look back to the almonds and remember that I need to make our Traditional Calabrese Torrone before Christmas. As kids, we usually got torrone from the Befana on January 6th, packaged and store-bought. When you buy torrone candy at the store, it is a nugget and white. However, Nonna Emilia made my favourite Torrone.
Our traditional torrone is darker and brittle and both my Calabrese and Sicilian families make this recipe, and mine has a twist. My nonna Emilia loved torrone and it was an easy treat she could make for her family at Christmas and Easter. In Italy, she had most of the ingredients from the land. My grandfather Salvatore had a friend with Almond Groves. The sisters, including my grandmother would go and harvest them as kids and those were truly special times.
For a recipe closer to home : https://melaspassocosenza.altervista.org/blog/il-torrone-calabrese-alle-mandorle/
The real almond story
My nonno Francesco in Sicily introduced me to almonds right from the tree in 1975. He loved going to his campagnia every day, and he would bring home treats for my brother and me. I had never seen an almond straight from the tree; the nut is encased in a light green, thick hairy case. Inside this, is a dark brown shell and inside this shell lives the treasured almond. A lot of work for a big taste. When I was in Sicily this summer in my dad’s hometown of Cerda, Salvatore Castro pursues a labour of love shelling almonds. He made it look easy, and in that moment I saw that my heritage is about a land, a people and living my best life. To live my life is to seek out these moments; all of this tied to the recipes I bring to my table.
Salvatore Castro, a childhood friend of my father cleans the almonds. We visited with him on his land this summer. A very special time to connect with family and traditions.
Part of Salvatore’s farm with a questionable sky. You can see how this land is touched by the sun, but sometimes too much. Sicily lacks much-needed rain most of the time and farmers work very hard to make sure that their crops thrive.
Today, my almonds come from Costco, but I take this Traditional Calabrese Torrone to my table with pride in my roots.
Always begin with some good ingredients.
When the butter, sugar and almonds begin to melt.
After a few minutes, it is brown and bubbly.
Remove it from the element turning heat off and add rum and cranberries.
Spread it out on A pan lined with parchment, and I garnish with a little extra yum.
It’s all done and I have it with a glass of cranberry ginger soda, amaretto and a few frozen cranberries. A great afternoon treat from my table to yours!!
Here is my simple torrone without add-ins.
Ready for the freezer.
Traditional Calabrese Torrone
Your sweet tooth will love you!!
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp butter optional
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 cup sugar 1/4 tsp allspice added into sugar
- 1 cup almonds
- 3 tbsp golden corn syrup
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 2 tbsp spiced rum
- 2 tsp white sugar
- 2 tsp coconut sugar
- 2 tbsp coconut sweetened flakes
- freshly ground nutmeg
Instructions
-
Combine butter, sugar, water and almonds in a non-stick pan over medium heat.
Bring to a boil and stir.
The mixture should reach a golden brown colour.
Add corn syrup.
Remove from heat and add dried cranberries and spiced rum. This will sizzle.
Stir quickly and pour onto a prepared pan with parchment paper.
Combine white sugar and coconut sugar and sprinkle over the top.
Sprinkle coconut next and then nutmeg.
Cool and break pieces off into all sizes.
This freezes well in an air-tight container. Line layers with wax paper.
Recipe Notes
For our traditional recipe version leave cranberries, spiced rum, and coconut out. Sprinkle sugar over top. You can also replace the corn syrup with honey.
Also you can leave the butter out, I add it for colour.
For more information on the production and harvest of almonds and to see some beautiful up-close pictures of Sicily an organic farming watch : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ca7bvgHihmc
The story of organic farming in Sicily, Italy. Organic farming of almonds, hazelnuts, pistachios, peanuts and pine nuts from the tree to the product of Mangia Organic products. www.damianorganic.it
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