A Christmas sweet of almonds and honey — hard and crunchy in the Alicante style, soft and ground to a paste in the Xixona style.
What makes it turrón
Almonds and honey, with sugar and egg white.
Set in a block between sheets of wafer paper.
Eaten at Christmas, cut into pieces.
Where it comes from
Almonds, honey and sugar worked together are old all round the Mediterranean, and turrón is usually traced to the sweets of al-Andalus. Xixona, in the hills above Alicante, has made it for centuries and is still the heart of the trade.
There are two classic kinds: turrón de Alicante, whole toasted almonds set in honey and egg white, hard as a brick; and turrón de Xixona, the same ground and worked with heat until soft and oily.