Almond panellets

How to prepare panellets . For a few years we have been preparing our own panellets at home, especially the classic panellets or piers that my girl likes so much.

This year we have decided to vary a little, it is also very easy, with the base of the panellets they can be prepared with a more modern touch. We can find them with all kinds of ingredients, pistachios, orange, glace brown, chocolate, coconut or coffee panellets … or these with only almonds , all the flavor of this dried fruit.

In Catalonia and Aragon one of their most important gastronomic traditions is the Castañada. In it you can not miss chestnuts, sweet potatoes … and panellets. These almond panellets are also a typical sweet from the area of ​​Catalonia, Aragon and the Balearic Islands on All Saints’ Day. In each house it is done in one way, some put potatoes or sweet potatoes, others only do it with almonds. In addition, it is a very easy recipe, with which the smallest of the house can help us prepare them.

I like to incorporate new traditions (wherever they come from), such as maintaining their own. So I don’t give up on preparing Halloween recipes and the classic All Saints recipes . I leave you the recipe of those that I prepared at home, they are quite simple to make and, although the ingredients are not cheap, mainly for the almond, the result is worth it. Make them at home simply and quickly by following this recipe.

Preparation of the almond panellets

1. Let’s grind the raw almonds in the mincer, it has to be like flour. You can also do it directly with the ground almond flour sold in supermarkets. Although my advice is to do it with raw almonds, your panellets will have more almond flavor.
2. We can make these panellets with potatoes or sweet potatoes. I give you the 2 options because in some places the sweet potato is not easy to get.
3. Cook the potatoes in a saucepan with boiling water. When we have the potatoes well cooked we remove the skin.
4. We crush them with a fork. Once crushed, add the sugar, the lemon zest, a pinch of cinnamon and stir.
5. When two are mixed, add the ground almonds and mix again.
6. The recommended thing is to add the ground almonds little by little while we are mixing, this way it will integrate better into the dough.
7. If the recipe is made with sweet potatoes, it is very similar.
8. We boil the sweet potatoes with the skin, about 15-20 minutes, depending on the size. You click them to know if they are already, once soft we drain them.
9. We let them cool so as not to burn our hands while we peel them. We peel them and we will do the same process as with the cooked potatoes.
10. Remember, one or the other, not both, choose between potato or sweet potato. Important that it cooled well because if we add the sugar with the hot sweet potato it will melt it.
11. For the sweet potato puree to cool faster I cover the bowl with film and put it in the fridge.

Preparation of the panellets dough

1. Now we beat 1 egg in a bowl and add to the dough with the almonds. Knead with your hands for several minutes until you get a homogeneous and compact dough. When we refer to a homogeneous mass, working the mass well. We can help ourselves with the help of a fork and then with our hands kneading for a few minutes.
2. We must wrap the dough in transparent film and let it sit for at least 12 hours, if we leave it for a whole day resting better.
3. To make the sides of the panellet smoother, you can tap it lightly against the table and it will be straighter and smoother.
4. With our hands we make balls the size of a pin pon ball, about 20 gr. each. With the help of our hands, cover the almond panellet on all sides.
5. We batter until they are well covered, here the normal thing is that it is the traditional size and shape that you see in the presentation photo, but you can give it the shape you want.
6. At home we have crushed the almonds with an electric grinder, if you do not have at home or at the time of preparing you can do it the traditional way that is with a good wooden mortar, you will also find them already chopped in supermarkets.

Baking and final presentation of the panellets

1. We will have no problem with the almonds sticking to future panellets, but if we see that the pasta is very dry and that the almonds do not stick, we paint each ball with egg white before coating.
2. We place each panellet on baking paper on an ovenproof tray and paint with egg yolk.
3. Bake with the oven previously hot at 200ºC for 8-10 minutes, depending on the oven you have at home.
4. When we see that they begin to brown, we cover them with aluminum foil so that they do not burn us on the outside.
5. We remove to a rack and let cool before serving, if you can contain it, of course.

When you try them (if the recipe has convinced you, you will now be tasting this delicacy), they do not even have the panellets that are sold at this time, of course, they will be much cheaper than in the pastry shops. What are you waiting to try them? And remember that it is a dessert for the whole year, delicious.

Be sure to enjoy all the yummy sweets in our dessert recipes , I assure you that you will find plenty of ideas to make yours much happier. And remember that there is no chestnut without “Panellets” Happy Chestnut!