Christmas Tortoni Recipes

ALMOND TORTONI

Steps:

• In a small bowl, beat egg white until foamy. Gradually beat in sugar, and continue beating until thick and glossy; set aside.
• Whip cream in a large bowl. Carefully fold in sherry, almond extract, macaroon crumbs, ground almonds, and chopped red and green cherries. Gently fold egg white into cream mixture.
• Spoon into 8 paper baking cups placed in medium size muffin tray. Sprinkle with slivered almonds. Cover muffin tray with clear plastic wrap, then wrap with aluminum foil. Freeze overnight.
• To serve: Let sit for 5 minutes at room temperature, then garnish with maraschino cherry halves.

CHRISTMAS TORTONI

Steps:

• Place paper or foil baking cup in each of 8 medium muffin cups, 2 1/2x1 1/4 inches. Mix cookie crumbs, almonds and 1/4 cup candied cherries; fold into ice cream.
• Divide ice-cream mixture among muffin cups. Decorate with red and green candied cherries. Freeze about 4 hours or until firm.

CHRISTMAS TORTELLINI & SPINACH SOUP

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, bring broth to a boil. Add tortellini; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes. Stir in the beans, tomatoes, salt and pepper; return to a simmer. Cook 4-5 minutes longer or until tortellini are tender., Stir in spinach and basil; cook until spinach is wilted. Top servings with cheese.

CHRISTMAS TORTELLINI SOUP

Steps:

• Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add pancetta. Cook until crisp. Add chopped onions; cook 3-4 minutes or until soft. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Add chicken broth and Italian seasoning. Bring to a boil, and simmer for 5 minutes., Meanwhile, cook tortellini according to package directions; drain. Add cooked tortellini to soup mixture. Stir in crushed tomatoes; simmer for 5 minutes longer. Add spinach; cook until spinach is wilted. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with Parmesan cheese.

TORTONI

Steps:

• Scoop ice cream into a bowl; stir until smooth but not melted.
• Stir in pecans, chopped cherries, rum extract and vanilla.
• Spoon into foil baking cups; freeze until firm.
• To serve, garnish each with 1 t whipped cream and a cherry.

CHOCOLATE TORTONI

Steps:

• In a microwave oven or over boiling water, melt both kinds of chocolate.
• Set aside to cool.
• Toast the almonds in a shallow pan in a moderate oven (350 degrees) for about 10 minutes.
• Beat egg whites with cream of tartar and salt until foamy white.
• Gradually beat in 1/4 cup of sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, until soft peaks form.
• Beat two cups of cream in a bowl until stiff.
• Beat in two teaspoons of sugar, the vanilla and melted chocolate, blend well.
• Fold the beaten egg whites, the chopped cherries, toasted almonds and the melted semi-sweet chocolate into the whipped cream mixture.
• Small chunks of chocolate may remain.
• Place paper baking cups in 24 muffin-pan cups (about 2 inches diameter).
• Freeze until firm. four hours or overnight.
• Beat remaining 1/2 cup of cream in a small bowl until stiff.
• Garnish each tortoni with a rosette of cream and a candied cherry.

TORRONE (ITALIAN NUT AND NOUGAT CONFECTION)

Steps:

• Line an 8x11-inch baking dish with plastic wrap, allowing ends to hang over the sides. Place 1 sheet of 8x10 wafer paper in the bottom of the pan. Keep the roasted almonds and pistachios in a warm place until ready to add at the end. This makes it easier to mix them in.
• Pour honey into a heavy-bottomed pot. Add sugar. Mix and stir over low heat with a spatula, stirring constantly until mixture turns from grainy to silky and smooth, about 30 minutes. Remove pot from heat.
• Place the egg whites in a mixing bowl; add a pinch of salt. Whisk until whites form soft peaks, 3 to 4 minutes. Place pot back on low heat. Gradually whisk about a quarter of the whipped egg whites into the honey/sugar mixture; whisk in the remaining egg whites in 3 more batches.
• Continue cooking over low heat, stirring constantly with a spatula until mixture turns a brighter white and a ribbon of the mixture does not immediately incorporate back into the rest of the mixture and stays intact on the surface for a while. This will take about 40 minutes. You can add a few drops of the mixture into a small bowl of ice cold water to test the consistency; ideally it should feel like soft clay.
• Whisk in vanilla and lemon zest. Add warm almonds and pistachios and stir to incorporate evenly.
• Transfer mixture to prepared baking dish. Even out as best you can with a clean oiled spatula. Top with 2nd sheet of wafer paper, shiny side up. Cover with plastic wrap and press down evenly, tamping mixture down gently but firmly. Remove top layer of plastic.
• Allow torrone to sit at room temperature until cool, firm, and ready to cut, 1 or 2 hours. Lift torrone from baking dish with the edges of the bottom layer of plastic wrap. Invert and remove plastic from the bottom. If the plastic wrap is difficult to remove from the edges of the torrone, you can trim off the edges.
• Cut torrone into 1-inch squares using a sharp serrated knife.

TORTONI

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Break the macaroons into pieces and toast them on a baking sheet until golden, dry and crumbly. Let cool. Grind to fine crumbs in a food processor. You need about 1 cup.
• Combine the sugar and 3/4 cup water in a small, heavy saucepan and bring to a boil. Cook until the syrup reaches 230 degrees on a candy thermometer.
• Meanwhile, in a mixer, whip the egg whites until they form firm peaks. By hand, whip the yolks until fluffy. In the mixer bowl, fold together the whites and yolks.
• When the sugar is ready, turn on the mixer to medium speed and, with it running, slowly pour in the syrup in a fine thread. Reduce the speed to low and whip until the mixture cools to room temperature. Mix in the vanilla.
• Whip the cream and fold it into the egg mixture.
• Line the base of a 2-quart soufflé dish (or other mold) with parchment. Spoon half the crumbs into the base. Cover with the mousse. Top with the remaining crumbs. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze overnight.
• Dip the base of the dish in a bowl of hot water. Run a knife around the edge of the mold, then invert onto a plate. Cut into wedges.