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Xixona Nougat

I finally managed to make Xixona nougat, and it turned out perfect! Ingredients For one 9x21cm bar. 300g toasted and peeled almonds. 160g icing sugar. 90g white chocolate. A small piece of grated lemon zest (just a touch). You'll also need A 9x21cm nougat mold. Sunflower oil for greasing. Aluminum foil for lining.   Method Grease the mold with sunflower oil and line it with aluminum foil... Before you start, get all your ingredients ready and within reach, because this comes together fast. Blitz the sugar together with the lemon zest. Add the almonds and chocolate, and keep blending until the almonds start releasing their oils, as you can see in the photo below... Turn the mixture into the mold without pressing it down. Just give it gentle taps so it settles into all the corners on its own, without packing it in... Pop it in the fridge and leave it alone for 3 to 4 days. Turn it out of the mold and enjoy! Wishing you a lovely and swe...

Mató and Anise Tart




ingredients

for a 28cm diameter pan
  • 350g shortcrust pastry.
  • 250g mató (fresh cheese).
  • 3 whole eggs.
  • 1 pinch of salt.
  • 200g sugar.
  • 1 tablespoon anise liqueur.
  • icing sugar for dusting.

for the shortcrust pastry

  • 450g pastry flour.
  • 390g cold butter, cut into cubes.
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt.
  • 1/2 teaspoon sugar.
  • 120g very cold water.

preparation

You can buy ready-made shortcrust pastry if you like, but making it yourself is worth the effort. Any leftovers freeze beautifully for next time.
To make the pastry, grab a big bowl and work the flour and butter together with your hands until it looks like coarse sand.
Add the salt, sugar, and water bit by bit (you might not need all the water), mixing as you go. The trick here is not to overwork it — the less you handle the dough, the flakier it'll turn out. Shape it into a ball, wrap it in plastic wrap, and let it rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Roll out the pastry between two sheets of parchment paper until it's about half a centimeter thick.
Line your pan with parchment and lay the pastry in, then prick it all over with a fork. Pop it back in the fridge for at least 20 minutes.
Heat your oven to 180°C, top and bottom heat.
Lay a piece of parchment over the pastry and fill it with baking weights — dried chickpeas work perfectly. This keeps the pastry from puffing up while it bakes.
 
Bake for 10 minutes, then carefully remove the parchment and weights. Keep baking until the pastry starts to turn golden.
While the pastry bakes, beat the eggs with the sugar and pinch of salt until they're nice and frothy.
Mash the mató with a fork until smooth, then fold it into the egg mixture along with the anise. Keep beating until you have a silky cream.
Pour this filling into your pre-baked crust.
Slide it back into the oven and bake for about 30 minutes, until the filling is set all the way through.
Take it out and let it cool completely before unmolding.
Once it's cooled down, give it a generous dusting of icing sugar.

Hope you enjoy this one as much as we do!



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