Italian nougat.......Hard/soft? Help please.
 

Hi All,
I'm off to Italy in 2 months... CAN'T WAIT:-)
I absolutely love Italian nougat (Spanish too) and I also have to bring loads home for friends and family. The problem is that I know which one we all love, well at least know what the box looks like but don't know the name, and the worst problem is I thought I had saved a box from the last trip but didn't and now I don't know which is hard and which is soft, can you help?
Also do you have a favourite?
Do you have any other favourite Italian sweets/pastries?
Thanks :-)

Dear Mischka

Won't you be able to solve your dilemma once you get to Italy?

Hi Mischka,

Won't your problem be solved once you get to Ialy and try some nougat?

Well yes I guess so, but I would still like to know what the hard and soft ones are called.
Of course I could buy a box and open it before leaving the store, taste and buy the next one if I've got the wrong one and keep going till I have it right!
I was also asking for favourites!

If you know what kind of torrone you like in the US, you are probably talking about brands commonly exported to this country. Where I live usually the kind in pretty boxes is soft, while the hard is sold in various sized chunks according to weight without fancy wrapping. You'll find wider variety in Italy. While torrone is probably available all over Italy, the city most well known for producing torrone is Cremona.

Hi cmt,
I am not in the USA, but I know what the box looks like of the one I last bought in Italy. The problem is that the box looks the same for the hard and soft. Oh I guess I'll just have to keep tasting before I buy loads to bring home.
Thanks, I didn't know that Cremona is the torrone capital. I'll also do some googling.
Any favourites anyone?

It is a bit of a trick question. . .

The soft nougat is called "torrone morbido." Many English speakers think "morbido" might mean dead or dried out and therefore hard. Not true. I believe the hard nougat will just be called "torrone."

Other words attached ("torrone con ___") refer to nuts and other additions, which you can probably identify by sight.

Yum I completely forgot that nougat was from Italy. (I probably would have noticed when I got there though). What is added to the nougat besides nuts?

egg white, honey, sometimes flavorings, like lemon or orange or cinnamon

I might be wrong - but the best nougat comes from Provence, not Italy. You can often score good nougat at your local international deli in the U.S.

Thanks Ellenem,
That's exactly what I was looking for.

Tinarose,
I love the hard ones with almonds or hazelnuts. Some of the soft ones have bits of fruit and cherries and nuts..... mmmmmm.... yum yum! Don't forget the gelato with nougat added :-)

<<I might be wrong - but the best nougat comes from Provence>>

Yes, you might be. :) It's just a matter of taste, but anyway, the Italian came first and the French was patterned after it.

cmt:

Here's a dictionary definition of nougat: [French, from Provençal, from nougo, nut, from Old Provençal noga, from Vulgar Latin *nuca, from Latin nux, nuc-, nut.] Look it up.

Hello as an italian I can tell you that the nougat is "Torrone" and there is a soft (morbido) and a crunchy bite version. My favourite is the soft with almonds! It is usually something they sell during Christmas time but probably you will find it anywyas, maybe not as fresh but always good. Big candy companies make them and actually I found some at TJmax or Marshall's , exact same brand: Pernigotti, Motta, Sperlari...
Have a good time in Italy!

Thanks everyone for all the advice.
Sondrina, I shall try the soft with almonds, yum! Is it correct that the hard is just called torrone?
I used to buy a spanish one that came in a big square box and the torrone was round and quite thin and hard with almonds, very good. Do you know of anything similar in Italy?

Here are some different varieties of torrone that are not the most common kinds. (Also other products on the page besides torrone.)

As Ellenem has said, soft torrone is called "morbido." Hard torrone is called "friabile." In my experience, they both come in a bar shape, packed in a box.

Here's the link that I thought I posted above for some less common varieties of torrone. http://www.savia.it/prodotti/