Panforte

Serves At least 10, potentially 20 or more!

Ingredients

1 cup almonds, toasted
1 cup macadamia nuts, toasted
1/2 cup chopped dried figs stems discarded
1/2 cup chopped medjool dates, pit discarded.
½ cup chopped dried apricots
1 cup (125g) plain flour
¼ cup (25g) cocoa powder
2 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground allspice
½ tsp ground ginger
¼ tsp ground cloves
¼ tsp salt
¾ cup (180ml) honey
200g caster white sugar
120g dark chocolate, chopped

Summary

Panforte is a traditional Tuscan sweet treat that’s dense and rich with crunchy roasted nuts and luscious dried fruit. We’ve adapted the recipe slightly here by using dried apricots and dates in place of candied peel. This adds a caramel-ish edge we love! You’ll find all the organic ingredients (except spices) in our web-store 😊

Panforte

Preheat oven to 160ºC fan forced.

Spread both almonds and macadamias on a large baking tray and place in the oven for 8-10 mins, until fragrant and golden brown or one shade darker, stirring once or twice.

Grease and line a 23cm springform pan.

Combine nuts and fruit in a large bowl. Sift together the flour, cocoa, spices, and salt and combine with nut mixture.

Combine the honey and sugar in a small saucepan. Heat to dissolve the sugar then simmer over low heat for 3 minutes stirring occasionally. Stir through the chopped chocolate until melted then remove from heat.

Pour into the bowl with the flour mixture, nuts, and fruit and mix until well combined. You will find that once you add the liquid the mixture becomes quite firm and you will need some muscle to mix it – it’s easiest to use your hands when it gets super tough!

Press the mixture into a prepared pan. Bake for about 30-40 minutes. Panforte is ready when the centre is delicate like custard but not sticky. Be careful not to overcook the panforte as it becomes much firmer once cool.

Cool completely in pan before turning out, dusting with icing sugar and slicing thinly to serve – so good with a coffee or dessert wine!