How To Make Marzipan from Almond Paste

Marzipan is very expensive to buy in the grocery store, and is often dry and flavorless. This marzipan recipe is super easy. I’ll show you how to make  marzipan that is much cheaper than pre-made, and tastes much better.

If you live in the US and you’ve bought marzipan in the grocery store, chances are you were sorely disappointed. Pre-made marzipan is expensive and is usually dry and tasteless.

I always make my own marzipan recipe from almond paste. Marzipan is a fairly luxurious ingredient but is very easy to make. You’ll need just 3 ingredients and it comes together in mere minutes.

Ingredients

• Almond Paste – Almond paste is made from “bitter” almonds, which have the distinctive marzipan flavor.
• Corn Syrup – Gives the marzipan a supple texture.
• Confectioner’s Sugar – Add less sugar for a softer marzipan like you’d use to cover a cake. Use more sugar for molding marzipan into fruits or flowers.

How to make Marzipan from almond paste:

• Combine almond paste with corn syrup to start making your own marzipan.

• Almond paste is darker in color and has a rough texture. Homemade marzipan is lighter in color, is sweeter and has a smooth texture
• Add enough sugar to make the marzipan as soft or firm as you need.

How to use Marzipan

Homemade Marzipan has a million and one uses.

• Cover Christmas fruitcakes with marzipan before finishing them with fondant. The marzipan creates an extra layer to keep the cake moist, plus it tastes much better than fondant. When making marzipan to cover cakes use the lower amount of sugar in the recipe. With less sugar the homemade marzipan is very soft and has a strong almond paste flavor, perfect for a cake covering.
• Marzipan can be used as a candy filling. Add orange zest to the marzipan and a little extra sugar to make it a little firmer. Cut the flavored marzipan it into small squares, cover the squares in tempered chocolate and you’ve got a fantastic little bon bon.
• Use homemade marzipan to make tasty and pretty decorative pieces. Add enough sugar and the marzipan becomes firm enough to make rose petals or holly leaves and berries.
• You can mold life-like pieces of fruit from marzipan, hand color them with powdered food coloring and create a show-stopping centerpiece that is delicious.

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4.48 from 46 reviews

Marzipan Recipe

By: Eileen Gray

Marzipan is very expensive to buy in the grocery store, and is often dry and flavorless. Homemade marzipan is cheaper than pre-made, is super easy to make and tastes much better.

Prep Time30 minutes mins

Total Time30 minutes mins

24 portions

US CustomaryMetric

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

• 7 oz Almond Paste (see note)
• 2 oz light corn syrup (1/4 cup)
• 8 oz confectioner’s sugar (approximately)

Instructions

• In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix the almond paste and corn syrup on low speed until it forms a smooth paste. If working by hand use a wooden spoon to mix until combined.
  7 oz Almond Paste, 2 oz light corn syrup
• Scrape the bowl. With the mixer running on low speed add 1/2 of the confectioner's sugar. If mixing by hand stir half the sugar. Turn the dough out onto a surface generously sprinkled with confectioner's sugar. Add additional powdered sugar to achieve the desired consistency (see note).
  8 oz confectioner’s sugar

Equipment

My Book

KA Stand Mixer

Petal Dust for Decorating

Holly Leaf Cutters

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Notes

A softer marzipan is good for covering cakes.  Add more sugar for a firmer texture if you plan to make roses or other decorations

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 45kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 0.2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 2mg | Potassium: 26mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin C: 0.01mg | Calcium: 15mg | Iron: 0.1mg

Have you tried this recipe?Mention @eileen.bakingsense or tag #bakingsense!