In Spain, which candy is on the table at Christmas?? Turrón, claro!
Turrón is a traditional almond nougat candy, which cannot be missing from a Spanish Christmas celebration. There are two original styles of turrón - Jijona or blando meaning soft, which has the consistency of peanut butter, and Alicante or turrón duro which is a hard nougat candy with whole almonds mixed throughout. Recently, literally dozens of varieties and flavors have appeared in the supermarket, including several chocolate versions.
Because of its popularity, turrón is now available around the world. Purchase it from ethnic food stores, import stores, gourmet food stores, mail order catalogs and web sites. Because there are different qualities of turrón, we recommend that you learn about them before you go shopping. There's no need to overpay for it.
- Turrón - Spanish Almond Candy for Christmas
- Spanish Christmas Sweets
- Turrón Museum-Museo de Turrón , Image Gallery of the Museum in Jijona, Alicante
Photo © Lisa Sierra, licensed to About.com, Inc.
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Comments
i’m wondering if the turron you have featured is a variation of the italian, torrone. my parents were originally from naples & bari so we always had torrone for holidays. it is also a nougat candy, in several flavors, [lemon, vanilla, orange, etc], studded w/ whole almonds. each piece comes in a little individual box w/ the original story printed on.
Yes, Spain and Italy, like other Mediterranean countries share many similar foods. Turron is one of them. Turron in Spain is an ancient and traditional sweet of Moorish (Arabic) origin. Turrón has been a popular sweet for centuries. It is said that the Moors invented turrón over 500 year ago in Jijona, a small town about 30 miles or so north of Alicante on the Mediterranean coast of Spain. There both hard turron, (similar to the Italian Turrone) and soft turron, which is almost like almond butter is produced. In Spain, turron is produced in “bricks” and you can even see antique slicers in the museum. Read more about the history, and see photos of the turron museum: Turron, Spanish Almond Candy and Turron Museum.