Greetings Loyal Readers,

My name is Master Lochlainn hua Rigbarddain, the current Royal Baker. I was selected during the reign of Randall and Iul’iana. I entered two versions of marchpane for the competition. The first was a traditional version using almonds as the main ingredient and the second alternative version substituted sunflower seeds to make the recipe friendly to those with tree nut allergies. I initially researched this recipe for the mid-day feast at the Raven’s Cove Baronial Birthday and Investiture of Ragnulfr and Freydis; where the theme of the event was a Tudor Yuletide Celebration. 

Recipe for Marchpane

Ingredients:

1½ cups ground almonds ¾ cup icing sugar

½ tsp food-grade rosewater 2-3 tbsp cold water

Method:

Measure one cup of the ground almonds and place them into a bowl with half a cup of icing sugar. Save the rest of the almonds and icing sugar for later. 

Give the ingredients in the bowl a stir and add the 1 tsp rosewater and the cold water. Mix the ingredients together until they form a soft, rosily perfumed dough—you might need to add a touch more water if it doesn’t hold together, but only add it drop by drop. Knead slightly and put to one side. 

Get out a six-inch cake tin with a removable base. Line the bottom with a circle of greaseproof paper. Press the dough into the cake tin, evening it out as you go along. It should come up about an inch high all around the tin. Slide it into the oven to bake for 30-35 minutes at 340ºF. 

Once cooked, the edges might turn slightly golden, and the marchpane will look pale and firmer. Remove it and leave it to cool.

Thank you for reading, and if you see me at an event, please feel free to come up and talk about baking with me.

Yours in Service,

Master Lochlainn