Chocolate and marzipan is always a perfect combination. This simple, easy and effortless recipe makes delicious homemade chocolate marzipan in less than 5 minutes. Use it to make sweets, such as bars and truffles, for holidays, or traditional chocolate marzipan Easter eggs and bunnies. They also make perfect holiday gift ideas.
Do you love marzipan? Or perhaps you know it as an almond paste. Both are similar and so simple to make.
Most people buy marzipan or almond paste because they presume it's challenging to make. And yet, in reality, this delicious confection takes really only 5 minutes to make.
As I mentioned previously, I grew up with mom making homemade marzipan by the buckets. She would take orders for these during festive seasons like Easter and Christmas. For Easter, it would be lots of Easter Eggs, and for Christmas, it would be lots of marzipan fruits.
And yet, mom never really made chocolate marzipan as much. For me, it's tastier because it's less sweet. And the bitterness in the cocoa powder cuts down on the sugar so it tastes even better. Today I want to share with you how I make homemade chocolate marzipan in 5 mins. I also added a video for your benefit.
Ingredient and substitutes
- Almonds/Nuts - Marzipan is traditionally made with almonds. And yet, you can make it with any nuts.
I grew up eating cashew nut marzipan because that's what mom always made. Back home in India cashews are more affordable than almonds. So, often cashews are used in marzipan.
I also make pecan marzipan because my husband likes pecans. - Powdered sugar - Also called icing sugar or confectioners sugar. This has an anti-caking agent such as cornstarch or potato starch. Which helps combine the ingredients and make a smooth ball. You can make powdered sugar at home. And make sure you add some anti-caking agent to the mix as well.
- Cocoa powder - I use dutch processed unsweetened cocoa powder. This also helps cut down some of the sweetness.
- Extract - I love using the rose extract in my marzipan, and yet traditionally almond extract is used. Vanilla works also great. You can also try Belgium chocolate extract or Irish cream extract.
- Liquid - Traditionally beaten egg whites were used. The purpose of the fluid is mainly to bind the dry ingredients. So, sugar syrup or water works just as well. I prefer water to prevent making the marzipan too sweet.
Homemade almond meal (nut meal)
Almond meal or nut meals are very readily available these days and save us the time and extra effort of making them at home. And yet, an almond meal could be very quickly made at home in less than 5 minutes. Provided you have a food processor or blender. You can see the step-by-step here in my post homemade almond meal aka nut meal.
Step by step instructions (Save/Pin)
- In a food processor - add almond meal, powdered sugar, and cocoa powder.
- Pulse until smooth - a minute or two (see tips).
- Transfer to a bowl.
- Add extracts and 3 tbsp liquid (light corn syrup, sugar syrup or water).
- Mix well until all the dry mix is moist.
- Test 1 - squish some mixture in your hand and see if you can make a ball. If not,
- Add a tablespoon of liquid - mix and test again.
- Mix until you can form a ball.
- Then knead for just 30 seconds more (see tips).
- Wrap in cling wrap and let rest until ready to use.
- Marzipan must be kept wrapped at all times to prevent drying.
Tips for making the perfect marzipan
- Why do you pulse the almonds meal and sugar some more? We do this to ensure the almonds are fine ground powder not grainy. This makes for a much smoother paste, especially when you need to use marzipan to cover cakes or to make Easter eggs.
- Water vs. sugar syrup - Water is preferable when you are not going to keep the marzipan for an extended period, which usually is the case with me. And if you plan to make this for sale or to keep for more than ten days - I highly recommend using sugar syrup.
- Why test - It is easy to end up with too much liquid in the marzipan, resulting in a gloppy mess. So it's best to be safe and add a tablespoon at a time. And only adding enough so you can form a dough.
- Why do we knead for only 30 seconds and not more - Nuts give out oil when you squeeze the paste. While we do need the mixture to be smooth, we do not want an oily mess in our hands. We want the oils to stay in the nut paste. Since oily marzipan is very difficult to work. It's still delicious, and yet can't be molded into things quickly.
- Read my post - Marzipan 101 - Everything you need to know about Marzipan
Frequently asked questions
Marzipan covered cake may be left at room temperature for a few days. And yet, like sugar paste, marzipan can dry if left open. Hence, it's best to wrap in plastic, so it's easy to mold and use again.
Marzipan can be eaten on its own and needs nothing else with it. It is also often used to mold into fruits during festive seasons like Christmas. Marzipan Easter Eggs are a trendy treat during Easter celebrations. I love making Marzipan truffles, marzipan chocolate balls, as well as my marzipan chocolate squares to give as gifts during the holidays.
You can also add marzipan in cake batters for a marzipan cake. For example, I love using marzipan in croissants.
Marzipan and almond paste use the same ingredients. However, marzipan is smoother and can be colored and molded into different things like Easter eggs, marzipan fruits, and other shapes. Almond paste is coarse and a little less sweet. And it's often used as filling in baked products like croissants.
While they both have the same ingredients, frangipani is very different used than marzipan. Frangipani is used in baked treats, often at the bottom of a pie crust or galettes topped with fruits. Also, frangipani needs to be cooked, whereas marzipan can be used raw, eaten on its own or added into other products as an ingredient.
Same as sugar paste, it's best to use food color gels to dye marzipan. Use a small amount with a toothpick as the color will intensify later. Also, avoid kneading the paste aggressively to prevent the marzipan from getting oily. Over-kneading can cause oil from the nuts to separate making it hard to work with.
No, cooked marzipan is a different recipe. I shared the recipe with you on my other blog - Cooked Marzipan Recipe
Can I make marzipan from an almond paste?
Yes! Almond paste has the same ingredients but is less sweet than marzipan. For every pound (450 grams) of almond paste gently knead in one cup (125 grams) of marzipan. That's it.
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Homemade Chocolate Marzipan Recipe
Print Pin Rate VeenaazmanovDescription
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cup (200 g) Almonds meal (7 oz)
- 1 ½ cup (180 g) Powdered sugar/icing sugar/confectioners sugar
- 2 tbsp Cocoa powder
- 4 tbsp Light corn syrup or sugar syrup or water
- ¼ tsp Almond extract
- ½ tsp Vanilla extract
- ⅛ tsp Rose extract (optional)
Instructions
- In a food processor - add almond meal, powdered sugar, and cocoa powder.
- Pulse until smooth - a minute or two (see tips).
- Transfer to a bowl.
- Add extracts and 3 tbsp liquid (light corn syrup, sugar syrup or water).
- Mix well until all the dry mix is moist.
- Test it - squish some mixture in your hand and see if you can make a ball. If not,
- Add a tablespoon of liquid - mix and test again.
- Mix until you are able to form a ball.
- Then knead for just 30 seconds more (see tips).
- Wrap in cling wrap and let rest until ready to use.
- Marzipan must be kept wrapped at all times to prevent drying.
Equipment
Nutrition Information
The nutrition information and metric conversion are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee its accuracy. If this data is important to you please verify with your trusted nutrition calculator. Thank you
Natalie
I love marzipan and never tried making it at home! Looks delicious and so easy I would definitely try this recipe soon!
Veena Azmanov
It's so easy Natalie!! You must try.
Corina Blum
I am a big fan of marzipan but I don't think I've ever had it flavoured with chocolate before. That is definitely something I need to change!
Veena Azmanov
Oh marzipan and chocolate are a great combination together. You must try Corina.
Priya
wow! these homemade Chocolate marzipan look so perfect and cute!
Veena Azmanov
Thank you Priya
Brian Jones
Well there you go, I had no idea that marzipan was so simple to make, next time I must give it a try.
Veena Azmanov
Absolutely Brian. So easy to make. Most people never think something like marzipan can be so easy.