Published: December 19, 2022 Last Modified: December 26, 2022 Freda Dias

Marzipan Recipe (Eggless & No-Cook)

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Marzipan is a popular sweet prepared during Christmas in most Goan and East Indian homes! Learn how to make this delicious, no-cook, and eggless marzipan, a much easier alternative to the traditional recipe!

Eggless marzipan served in a white speckled platter

Marzipan and milk cream were the two sweets that were always prepared in our home for Christmas for as long as I can remember. Most of the other sweets were store-bought. Mom had a busy working schedule, so we skipped making most of the sweets, except for these two.

These beautiful and dainty, colorful bite-sized treats were quite a temptation! At least a quarter of a batch would vanish while preparing them, and my Mom had to somehow tuck away those jars of marzipan somewhere safe until Christmas!

That’s my marzipan story and guess what? It is my children’s story now as well. Circle of life! I totally empathize with my Mom now.

Table of Contents

What’s marzipan anyway?

Marzipan (pronounced as mah-zuh-pan) is a sweet paste made from ground almonds, sugar, and egg whites. It is also known as almond candy dough.

It is often colored and molded into different shapes, or used to cover traditional Christmas fruit cakes, wedding cakes, Battenberg cakes, etc. The cake is covered with a layer of marzipan and then with a layer of fondant.

It is also made into a sweet/confection/candy and sometimes coated with chocolate to make marzipan chocolate.

It is interesting to know that marzipan is made with slight variations in ingredients from one continent to another. You can read more about the history and variations on Wiki.

Cashew marzipan arranged on a crumpled parchment paper

Ingredients needed

Marzipan is popular in most European countries. It was introduced to Goa through the Portuguese since it was a former Portuguese colony! But unlike the European version that uses almond meal, the Goan version is made with cashew nuts.

Goa is known for its premium quality cashew nuts, also they are slightly inexpensive as compared to almonds. Hence the recipe has been adapted over time by people to use what was available locally!

The traditional Goan version of making this confection is a laborious process and then shaping the hot dough into these pretty shapes is another task altogether.

The ingredients that go into the traditional Goan recipe are,

Cashew nuts
Egg whites
Sugar
Rose water or almond extract

Mum learned a simpler way of making this from her friend Flavia. This is a no-cook and egg-free marzipan recipe. You will need the following ingredients;

Cashew nuts: Make sure you use unsalted cashew nuts. I prefer using broken ones rather than whole cashew nuts as it’s easier to grind.

Icing sugar: Also known as confectioners’ sugar or powdered sugar. Traditionally, the quantity of sugar used is twice that of cashews. But I find a 1:1 ratio just perfect.

Almond extract: To flavor the marzipan.

Warm water: To bring everything together!

Edible food colors: This is optional, but it makes them look really vibrant and festive! You may choose natural food colors too.

Ingredients needed for marzipan without egg

Since this recipe contains no eggs, it is absolutely suitable for vegetarians or anyone who is allergic to eggs.

This is a great activity to get your kids involved in. So without further ado, let’s make some Christmas marzipan 🙂

How To Make Goan Marzipan (eggless) – Step-By-Step-Process

Step 1: Marzipan dough

Grind 200 grams (1.5 cups) of cashews to a fine powder, in batches. I ground 1.5 cups of cashew nuts in 3 batches, by pulsing them 8-10 times. (Photos 1 and 2)

Sift it through a fine mesh sieve by pressing the powder with the back of a spoon. (Photos 3 and 4)

Add 200 grams of icing sugar (1 & 1/3 cups + 2 tablespoons) to the ground cashew nut powder and mix until well incorporated. (Photos 5 and 6)

Cashews ground to a fine powder, sifted, and mixed with icing sugar

Add 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract and 2-3 teaspoons of warm water. Mix well using a spatula. (Photos 7 to 9)

Add more warm water, a teaspoon at a time, and bring the dough together using your hands. You will need about 2 to 3 tablespoons (30 to 45 ml) of warm water approximately. (Photos 10 to 12)

Pro tip: Avoid kneading the dough with too much pressure as that can cause the cashews to release excess oil.

Almond essence and warm water added to cashew mixture to make the dough

Step 2: Divide the dough into equal parts and add color to each

Divide the dough according to the food colors you need. (Photo 13)

Flatten a portion of the dough using your fingers, and add about 1 drop of food color. (I’ve used gel colors and one drop was enough. Add as needed depending on the type of food color you use) (Photo 14)

Bring the edges of the dough towards the center and then knead to mix the color evenly. (Photos 15 to 17)

Repeat the same process to color the rest of the dough. (Photo 18)

Pro tip: You may leave one portion of the dough uncolored if you need to adjust the color of any dough, just in case it gets too dark for your liking!

Dough divided into equal parts and colored with food colors

Step 3: Shape and unmold

Once your dough is ready, pinch a portion of the dough and shape them by filling the molds and pressing gently. Remove any excess dough. (Photo 19)

Repeat with the rest of the dough.

Gently pat the back of the mold to release the marzipan. If using the hard silicon molds, you may need to twist it a bit to unmold it. (Photo 20)

Transfer to a tray lined with parchment paper or kitchen paper towel (if cashews have released oil while kneading, the paper towel will absorb excess oil better), and let it air dry for 6-8 hours/overnight to a day. (Photo 21)

Do not over-dry the marzipan or it will become hard.

Shaping of the marzipan dough and unmolding them

Storage instructions

Allow the marzipan to dry up completely, and transfer it to an airtight container.

They keep well for 1 to 2 weeks at room temperature and then they will begin to dry out. For a longer shelf life, you may refrigerate them in an airtight container for up to a month or freeze them for up to 3 months. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Recipe Tips

If making a large batch: I suggest kneading the dough in batches as it is easier to work with. Also, the cashews won’t release as much oil while kneading.

Cashew nuts: If the cashews have lost their crunch, you can revive them by dry roasting them in a skillet on low heat, stirring frequently. Do not brown them! Set aside on a plate and let them cool completely. This will also help in grinding them to a fine powder and not a paste.

Grind the cashews in batches: It’s best to grind the cashews in batches using the pulse setting of the mixer grinder to get a fine powder. If you grind the cashews in one go, they will release oil and you will end up with cashew butter!

Sweetness: The sweetness of the marzipan is just right for us with these proportions. If you prefer sweeter marzipan, you may increase the quantity of icing sugar.

Sift the icing sugar first: I suggest sifting the icing sugar and setting it aside first because the sieve tends to get slightly sticky sometimes while sifting the cashew, especially towards the end of the last batch of ground cashews.

Do not skip sifting the cashew powder: This step is absolutely essential for that smooth and creamy finish. If you skip this step you will see white flecks of cashew nut pieces and it doesn’t look appealing nor does it give your that smooth, creamy, and melt-in-the-mouth texture!

Store-bought cashew flour: If you have access to readymade finely ground cashew flour, feel free to use that instead. Taste test to ensure that it’s good. I still suggest sifting the cashew flour.

If using whole almonds: You can use almonds in place of cashew nuts, but you have the blanch the almonds, skin them, and let them dry completely. Then powder them, and finally, sift and use in the recipe.

If using readymade almond powder: Make sure you remember to sift it, or else the dough will appear grainy.

If using rose water: You can add 1/2 teaspoon of rose essence to the mixture instead of almond essence. Alternatively, you can replace 1 tablespoon of warm water used for the dough with 1 tablespoon of rose water instead

Add water gradually to form the dough: You need very little water to make this dough. Adding too much in one go will make it super sticky! To troubleshoot you will need to add more of both cashew powder and icing sugar in equal proportions.

Two hands holding eggless marzipan served on a speckled platter

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between marzipan and almond paste?

Although Marzipan and almond paste have the same ingredients, the ratio of almonds to sugar differs in both, almond paste has lesser sugar as compared to marzipan.
Marzipan is smooth and firm whereas almond paste is softer.
Marzipan is mainly used to make candy/confections or sweets or in lieu of fondant for cakes and other baked goods, basically, you can eat it as such! Almond paste on the other hand is less sweet and slightly coarse and is used as an ingredient for baked goods.

What does marzipan taste like?

It has a firm exterior, but it is really soft and creamy, and just melts in your mouth. It is sweet and has a strong, nutty almond flavor.

Can I make it without mold?

Yes, of course, you can still make some! When molds were not available, people made marzipan fruits shaped by hand.

You can use the uncolored dough, make fruit shapes, and paint with edible food color or make shapes using already colored dough.

You can also make small balls of colored dough and stick a plastic leaf to make quick marzipan fruits. These plastic leaves are commonly available in most stores around Christmas in Mumbai and I’m sure you’d find them in other places as well.

You can also roll out the dough between two parchment papers, and make fun shapes using cookie cutters. FYI, I’ve used this same recipe to make kaju katli. Do have a look at the post if you need stepwise pictorials.

How healthy is it?

Even though it is made with cashew nuts which are a good source of fiber, minerals, protein, and good fats, marzipan cannot be considered a healthy food. Since it is also packed with sugar, this is best eaten in moderation!

Close-up shot of egg-free cashew marzipans served on a white speckled ceramic platter

You may also enjoy these Goan Christmas sweets

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Editor’s note: This recipe was originally published on Dec 7, 2016. It has been republished and updated with new images, video, and content on Dec 19, 2022. The recipe is the same, I’ve just scaled back on the quantities. You can easily scale up this recipe according to your desired yield.