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| SPANISH
TURRON |
FOOD
& COOKING ARTICLE |
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 Turrón
is the most well known of Spanish sweets and although
it can be enjoyed any time of year, it is particularly
famous for its traditional appearance at Christmas time.
Spanish children get excited when the first turrón
of the season is brought home as it is a signal that
Christmas is fast approaching.
The
origin of turrón is said to go back over five
hundred years when the first example of this gorgeous
sweet was first created by the Moors in the small town
of Jijona, north of Alicante. Jijona and turrón
still go hand in hand today, the town is famous for
its production and it is home to the turrón museum
where the most famous and expensive brand of turrón,
1880 can be found.
Jijona
and Alicante turrón are the most well known types
of turrón, named after the location where they
were created. Turrón de Alicante is the hard,
nougat type, so full of almonds that it would crumble
if any more were squeezed in. Turrón de Jijona,
sometimes called the original turrón is soft
and sticky, a bit like fudge.
The
most important ingredients of turrón are honey
and almonds and only the finest local examples of both,
which are found in abundance in the region of Alicante,
go into the very best turrón.
Apart
from the Alicante and Jijona turrón, whose recipes
have remained unchanged for generations, there are many
variations and types. A fairly new but extremely popular
type of turrón is the yema tostada where
ground almonds and egg yolks are mixed together and
toasted to perfection for a soft and sweet treat. There
is also the turrón de chocolate which
can come in various types ranging from extrafino
to popular depending on the percentage of cocoa
inside.
Whatever
the type of turrón you prefer, the quality is
an important factor. The best turrón available
is the supreme quality. Producers must abide by strict
rules in order to be allowed to label their turrón
as supremo, there must be at least 64% of almonds
present in the hard Alicante turrón and 60% contained
in the soft Jijona turrón.
The
perfect way to enjoy turrón is to serve up a
selection of samples of each after dinner with a coffee
or liqueur. As a treat for the children, crumble a generous
amount over soft vanilla ice cream. The Spanish also
love having little tasters of the different types of
turrón with a glass of cava for a very festive
aperitif. It truly is one of Spain's sweet delights
to be enjoyed by all whatever the occasion or time of
year.
Researched
and written by Gayle Hartley
www.orceserranohams.com
©
Copyright 2008 Orce Serrano Hams - www.orceserranohams.com
Published
21 January 2008
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