fluentfriends Newsletter: December 2013

Sweet Christmas treats to enjoy this festive season

As Christmas fast approaches, we look at some of the sweet treats people will be enjoying across Europe this festive season. Find out a little bit more about Turrón, Pandoro and Buche de Noel and then have a go at making your very own version using the recipes we provide.

Pandoro

Pandoro is sweet Christmas bread from Verona, Italy, that is star-shaped, incredibly light and dusted with powdered sugar (some say to make it look like the nearby mountains). The name pan d’oro means “bread of gold,” and since white bread cost a lot in the Middle Ages and was consumed only by the wealthy, that’s exactly what this would have seemed like to the Veronese families who pinched pennies to enjoy this treat once a year. Today, you’ll sometimes see a hole cut in pandoro and filled with chantilly cream or gelato.

This wonderful Italian sweet treat is not easy or quick to recreate at home yourself however, it is something that more experienced people in the kitchen will certainly enjoy! Take a look at this great recipe on Youtube in Italian and you can practise your culinary skills and Italian too! Watch Pandoro recipe video>

Turrón 

Turrón is a very old, traditional sweet of Moorish (Arabic) origin that is enjoyed throughout Spain over the festive period. Turrón has been a popular sweet for centuries, even outside Spain’s borders. It is said that the Moors invented turrón over 500 year ago in Jijona, a small town about 30 miles or so north of Alicante. Jijona’s economy is focused on the production of turrón and there is even a museum of turrón that chronicles the process and history of the sweet.

There are two traditional basic types of turrón. Soft Jijona or turrón blando, which is so smooth it has the consistency of peanut butter and hard Alicante or turrón duro, which is like a thick almond nougat, similar to peanut brittle.

If you would like to recreate this at home yourself you can follow the link to this video in Spanish. The recipe is not too difficult so it’s definitely worth a try! Watch Turrón recipe video>

Chocolate Bûche de Noël

The Chocolate bûche de Noël is a Christmas yule log cake that was created in the late 1800s by a French pastry chef looking to replace and pay culinary homage to the original yule log tradition. This new, gastronomic tradition caught on in spectacular fashion, and the Christmas dessert is now celebrated worldwide. The French chocolate bûche de Noël recipe showcases a light-as-air, vanilla Genoise cake rolled into a cylinder with the richest, homemade chocolate buttercream frosting.

Take a look at this recipe in French and have a go at recreating this delight at home in time for the festive season! Watch chocolate Buche de Noel recipe video>

If you liked these 3 Christmas recipes make sure you tune into Facebook during the month of December where we will share some more recipes for festive treats, tips, vocabulary and traditions.

Read: Vocabulary to get you in the mood for Christmas

Read: Stocking fillers for language lovers