Daring Bakers - Nougat

The March 2014 Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Rebecca of BakeNQuilt. She challenged us to learn to make classic nougat and to make it our own with our choice of flavors and add-ins.

I decided to keep it simple but was very glad to complete this one too, since my baby wasn´t born by the time I did it.
Now she is already beside me and I´m sure she'll be a partner of many challenges.

I couldn't find some of the ingredients such as corn syrup, edible paper, cream of tartar, cocoa butter, but still insisted in giving it a chance and it worked, but it has to be stored in the fridge and eaten right away.
Next time I'll buy those missing ingredients online and prepare a true nougat. Thanks for the challenge!

Nougat Torrone:

Recipe Source: Chocolates and Confections by Peter P. Greweling
Servings: one 9x13 inch (23x33 cm) slab
Prep time: approximately 45 minutes
Cook time: approximately 30-45 minutes
Cool time: approximately 45 minutes

Ingredients

4 sheets edible wafer paper, 8x11 inches (20x28 cm) (optional, see Recipe Notes)

For the Meringue:

2 large egg whites, at room temperature
¼ cup (60 ml) (50 gm) (1¾ oz) granulated sugar
½ teaspoon (3 gm) cream of tartar

For the Syrup:

1½ cups (360 ml) (500 gm) (18 oz) honey (preferably light in color and flavor) [used a bit more to compensate the lack of corn syrup]
3 cups (720 ml) (600 gm) (21 oz) granulated sugar
½ cup (120 ml) (170 gm) (6 oz) light corn syrup
½ cup (120 ml) water
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped

Add-ins:

2 tablespoons (30 ml) (25 gm) (1 oz) cocoa butter, melted [used butter]
5 cups (1.2 litre) (680 gm) (24 oz) toasted whole unblanched almonds

Recipe Notes:

Edible wafer paper is nice to have if you’re giving nougat as gifts as it helps with the stickiness issue. However, it’s not essential. If you can’t find it, grease the pan and then line it with parchment paper. Grease the parchment as well. You should probably wrap each cut piece individually to keep them from sticking together. [my option was to use the parchment paper and wrap each piece individually].
Fat (cocoa butter in this case) is added to nougat to give it a shorter texture and cleaner bite. I’ve tried the recipe without it and it still comes out tasting good, it’s just chewier. Any fat added to nougat should be one that is solid at room temperature.

Directions:

1. Place the toasted almonds in a heat safe bowl and put in an oven at 250°F/121°C until needed.
2. Line the bottom of a 9x13 inch (23x33 cm) pan with wafer paper, cutting it to fit. I like to put plastic wrap or parchment under the wafer paper just for extra insurance that I’ll be able to get the nougat out of the pan.
3. Combine the egg whites, sugar and cream of tartar for the meringue in a 4.5 or 5 quart (about 5 litre) mixer bowl fitted with a whip attachment but do not begin whipping.
4. Heat the honey in a small saucepan or in the microwave until nearly boiling
5. Combine the remaining ingredients for the syrup (sugar, corn syrup, water and vanilla bean) in a 2 quart (2 litre) saucepan.
6. Bring the sugar mixture to a boil and then lower the heat and boil for 3 minutes, covered.
7. Remove the lid and attach the candy thermometer. Continue to cook uncovered on high heat without stirring until the syrup reaches 290°F/143°C.
8. When the sugar mixture reaches 290°F/143°C, start whipping the egg whites on high speed and move the sugar mixture off the heat and slowly pour the heated honey into the sugar mixture. The mixture will foam up initially.
9. Put the pan back on the heat and continue cooking until the mixture again reaches 290°F/143°C.
10. Remove from the heat and use tongs to take out the vanilla bean pods.
11. Slowly pour the hot syrup into the whipping whites by letting it run down the inside of the mixer bowl. Don’t pour it directly on the whites or they may collapse.
12. Whip on high speed for 3 minutes.
13. Add the cocoa butter and whip JUST until the mixture is smooth again. Do not over mix. If you have a 4.5 quart (4.5 litre) mixer like I do, you may need to initially lower the speed of the mixer while pouring in the cocoa butter as it will try to slop out.
14. Remove the bowl from the mixer and dump in the hot nuts from the oven. Mix quickly with a heat-safe spatula until the almonds are evenly distributed.
15. Immediately pour the hot nougat into the prepared pan, on top of the wafer paper. Cover the top of the nougat with more wafer paper and press to smooth and even out the nougat.

16. Let the nougat cool at room temperature until just warm to the touch, about 45 minutes. Don’t let it go too long or it will be very difficult to get out of the pan and difficult to cut. You want it to still be a little flexible when you remove it but not so soft that it loses its shape.
17. Pry the nougat out of the pan with a spatula and dump it out onto a cutting board. Trim the edges and cut the nougat with an oiled knife into the size pieces you want.

18. Wrap the nougat individually or store at room temperature in an airtight container. The texture of the nougat will soften a bit after a few days, especially if you have added dried fruits in with the nuts.