Pasta di Mandorle

This is a sweet paste based on ground almonds, used by pastry chefs to make cakes and petits fours. It is mostly used in Southern Italy and Sicily, where almonds grow in abundance. Pasta di mandorle is also known as marzapane or pasta reale. Another type of almond paste called marturana was originally made by nuns in a convent at Marturana in Palermo, Sicily. This paste is used as a base to model various shapes and figures, for example fruit, animals, etc, which