This is a surprisingly delicious sugar-free marzipan made with birch xylitol, water and about 60% almonds, a perfect quantity.  I love marzipan but sometimes avoid it as commercial varieties contain so much sugar and often have only around 20% almond content.  So this marzipan has become my perfect healthier, tooth-friendly way to cover desserts like mini Swedish Princess cakes or fruity entremets like faux clementines.  And it actually rolls out pretty well!

Xylitol

I’ve read some people get stomach problems from eating products containing xylitol.  Personally, if I overdo any food with artificial sweeteners my stomach does start gurgling somewhat.  But I don’t have a problem eating smaller quantities, for example an individual mini cake covered in marzipan is fine – but 3/4 of a bar of sugarfree chocolate is not!  Lol, that’ll teach me.

Keep in mind also that Xylitol is very dangerous for dogs, so make sure they can’t eat any.

The good news is there’s evidence that it’s good for your teeth; you can find more info and links about this on my Xylitol page here.

Alternative sweetener

Another alternative is using Erythritol instead of Xylitol in this recipe, which other online marzipan recipes recommend.  Apparently some people tolerate it better than Xylitol (you would use the same quantity, by the way).  But if you use Stevia you need to use a lot less as it’s very intense and there can be a strange taste – perhaps a teaspoon?  I’m not sure it would work.

Ingredients

• 160g/1 and 2/3 cups ground almonds
• 90g/1/3 cup + 4 and 1/2 tsp (plus extra 2 or 3 tbsp if needed later) ground birch xylitol (or Erythritol)
• 18-25g/ml (plus extra 1 tsp if needed later) water
• scant 1/4 tsp bitter almond extract (or pure vanilla extract)
• a tiny amount of colouring powder or gel, if using

You can also place in reusable plastic wallet or in plastic film and freeze for several months.