- 1 cup Blanched Hazelnuts [or Cashews]
- 4 x 1/2-ounce packages blanched whole Almonds
- 1/2 cup ground Almonds [or Dried Cherries]
- 2 cups Sugar
- 1 cup light Corn Syrup [ie: glucose syrup]
- 1/2 cup Honey
- 1/4 tsp Salt
- 1/4 cup Water
- 2 Egg Whites
- 2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 tsp Almond Extract
- 1/4 cup butter, softened
2. Add hazelnuts and whole almonds to cookie sheet. Toast until golden, about 10 minutes.
3. Add sugar, corn syrup, honey, salt, and water in a heavy bottomed saucepot (3 quart). Over medium heat, stir mixture until sugar dissolves. Continue cooking, without stirring until syrup reaches the hard ball stage, reading 252 degrees F on a candy thermometer.
4. Meanwhile, in a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat egg whites at high speed until stiff peaks form.
5. While mixer is on, in a thin steady stream, pour 1/4 cup of hot syrup over egg whites, beating at high speed until mixture is stiff enough to hold its shape, about 5 minutes.
6. Continue to cook the remaining syrup to brittle threads, reading 315 to 318 degrees F on a candy thermometer.
7. While mixer is on, in a thin steady stream, pour remaining hot syrup over egg whites, beating at high speed until mixture is stiff enough to hold its shape. Add vanilla extract, almond extract, and butter, beating again for about 5 minutes. Stir in toasted nuts and ground almonds with a wooden spoon. Transfer mixture to a buttered 11 x 7 x 1 1/4 inch pan [or lined with parchment and sprayed with oil]. Smooth the mixture evenly with a spatula [quickly]. If it is a particularly humid day, refrigerate until firm. [Some recipes use rice paper - the thin stuff you can print on, not the stuff for making salad rolls - and sandwich the nougat between, to make it less sticky to handle.]
8. Loosen edges of candy with a knife. Invert nougat on cutting board. Cut into pieces [using a hot, dry knife]. Store in airtight container.