Well-known French pastry chef Michel Willaume, winner of the World’s Pastry Championship alongside the US team in 2001, is the author of this ‘turrón’ – so appropriate now that Christmas is coming. Unlike Montelimar’s famous variety, Willaume’s nougat contains a balanced proportion of almonds and pistachios.

Pistachio nougat ‘turrón’

ingredients

Pistachio nougat by Michel Willaume

• 400 g honey
• 625  g sugar
• 200 g water
• 125 g glucose
• 100 g egg whites
• 100 g sugar
• 25 g salt
• 150 g pistachio paste
• 175 g cocoa butter, melted
• 500 g sliced almonds, toasted
• 250 g pistachios, toasted

preparation

Boil the honey up to 124ºC. Cook the sugar, water and glucose to 152ºC. Whisk the egg whites together with the sugar and salt, make a meringue pouring the honey over the firm egg whites. Mix well and add the cooked sugar to the meringue and honey. Heat with the help of a torch in order to dry the dough, add the pistachio paste together with the cocoa butter and nuts.

Mix well and place in a 1.2-cm high frame mold. Leave to cool and crystallize. Cut as desired.

Michel Willaume
www.mwpastry.com

Michel Willaume, World Pastry Champion, is a privileged witness of the evolution of sweet gastronomy around the world.
He participated in so good..magazine #2.