Almond Paste vs Marzipan

Both almond paste and marzipan are made from ground almonds and sugar (plus other ingredients), but the proportions of those ingredients differ.

Almond paste has more ground almonds and less sugar (sometimes equal ratios), making the almond flavor more pronounced, while marzipan is the opposite. Because of that, marzipan is sweeter and has a smoother texture. Marzipan is also often used like fondant, where it’s colored, rolled to cover cakes, or molded into shapes. Almond paste is coarser, less pliable, and is usually mixed with other ingredients or used as a filling in baked treats, such as in Stollen.

Generally speaking, the two are not interchangeable.

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