Marzipan

//ˌmɑːzɪˈpæn// noun, verb

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A confection made from a paste of almonds, sugar and egg white as a binder. uncountable, usually
  2. 2
    almond paste and egg whites wordnet
  3. 3
    A similar confection made using another nut, such as peanut or hazelnut. uncountable, usually

    "Place the hazelnuts on a baking sheet and grill […] then grind finely […] then add the caster sugar and ground hazelnuts [to egg whites] and mix to a stiff marzipan paste. Sandwich the pecan nuts together in pairs with a little of the hazelnut marzipan."

  4. 4
    A piece of such a confection. countable, usually

    "One afternoon not long afterwards you waited byher bedside as she swam through anesthetic. A box of cherry chocolates and a dozen roses in your lap. Cherry chocolates and chocolate-covered marzipans. Then you drove her home. Chocolate-covered marzipans being her favorite."

Verb
  1. 1
    To cover with marzipan. transitive

    "a marzipanned cake"

Etymology

Etymology 1

Borrowed from German Marzipan, from Italian marzapane, Venetan marzapane. Believed to be, with influence from pane (“bread”), derived from Arabic مَرْطَبَان (marṭabān, “spice box”) which comes from the name of a Burmese port known for its spice exports, Martaban, now called in Burmese မုတ္ထမ (muthta.ma.).

Etymology 2

Borrowed from German Marzipan, from Italian marzapane, Venetan marzapane. Believed to be, with influence from pane (“bread”), derived from Arabic مَرْطَبَان (marṭabān, “spice box”) which comes from the name of a Burmese port known for its spice exports, Martaban, now called in Burmese မုတ္ထမ (muthta.ma.).

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