This marshmallow torrone recipe has chocolate, hazelnuts, and of course, marshmallow goodness layered between two wafers for an easy and delicious sweet! Crunchy, chewy, and chocolatey – you won’t be able to resist!
Italian dolci are always a wonderful treat at family gatherings, holidays, and important celebrations. While many gravitate to desserts like cannoli, if you search the dessert table, you’ll find, like a hidden treasure, torrone.
This marshmallow torrone recipe is not a traditional torrone – because traditional torrone doesn’t have marshmallows, or chocolate in it. This recipe is a nice alternative if you’re looking for something to make that is a little bit easier to make than torrone, but still has a similar feel.
As torrone can be crunchy, chewy, and sweet, it’s the perfect treat to end an evening. And, because of its bite size style, guests will likely partake even after having one or two other dolci. No wonder Italians call it a dessert of another dessert!
Italian usually serve torrone on special occasions like a feast day, and most prominently during the Christmas season.
What is Torrone
Torrone is a type of nougat confection filled with honey, nuts, egg whites, sometimes candied fruit, nestled in between two wafers. Nougat, is a popular treat with variations in Spain, Iraq, Turkey, and Greece. Even in Italy, there are many versions of torrone depending on region and taste.
For my version, I used marshmallows, hazelnuts, and chocolate chips for the chocolate center. This creates a chewy center that is sweet, but also nutty in flavor. When combined, the mixture tastes a little bit like nutella hazelnut torrone!
So, while not technically a traditional nougat-type torrone, this version does have a sweet and nutty flavor, and placed between two wafers for some added crunch.
Why you should make this Recipe
- It’s easy to make – this recipe is much easier to make than a traditional torrone; simply melt your ingredients in the microwave and spread onto wafer sheets. It’s a quick and easy treat to make for guests or holiday events
- It’s delicious – with the combination of ingredients, this chocolate torrone gets rave reviews from anyone whose tried it!
- It freezes well – after making a batch, it stores well in the freezer, so perfect for those times you need to serve a quick treat, or just nice to have on hand whenever you need.
Ingredients
- Marshmallow – helps create a chewy center
- Hazelnuts – gives great nutty flavor (and hints on nutella when combined with the chocolate)
- Chocolate chips (milk and semi-sweet) – to create the chocolate base
- Wafer sheets – to enclose the filling, and to give more crunch to the torrone. These are not to be confused with wafer paper. Wafer sheets are more cookie-like, while wafer paper is just that – a thin sheet of edible paper.
- Butter – for added richness and to help combine the ingredients
- Liqueur or vanilla extract – for enhanced flavor
Which Nuts to Use
As nuts are big component of this marshmallow torrone recipe, you’re pretty much limited only to your imagination!
You could use any combination of nuts and chocolate (for example, I used hazelnut, and a combination of milk and semi-sweet chocolate). You can even add dried fruit to the mixture if preferred. Some combinations to try could be:
- White chocolate with pistachios and cranberries
- Dark chocolate with almonds
How to make the Marshmallow Torrone Recipe – Step by Step
When oven is ready, place hazelnuts in sheet pan, and place pan in oven to toast the hazelnuts for about 10 minutes, or until hazelnuts are fragrant.
Combine other ingredients into large glass bowl, or any other microwave-safe bowl. Melt ingredients and mix with spatula (Photos 1-4). Add hazelnuts and liqueur of choice to melted ingredients, and mix once more (Photo 5).
Get wafer sheets ready, and working quickly, spread marshmallow chocolate mixture over one of the wafer sheets (Photo 7), then place the other sheet on top (Photo 8).
Place a sheet of parchment paper on the top wafer sheet, and weigh down with something heavy (e.g. books or something to press down), and leave weight on for 30 minutes (Photo 9).
After thirty minutes, check to see if wafers are sealed, and once ready, cut into diamond shapes. Serve and enjoy, or store in freezer for later! (photo 10).
Storage
In addition to being a tasty treat, this recipe also keeps and freezes very well! To store at room temperature, keep in an airtight container for up to one week. To freeze, keep in freezer in ziplock bags or containers for up to three months. To eat after freezing, defrost at room temperature for an hour before serving.
Top Tips
- Be creative and try different combinations of chocolate, nuts, and liqueur to make your own version based on favorite flavors
- Serve this treat as an “after dessert” dessert for a fun surprise for friends and family
- Make a batch and store for later, or give as a gift (makes for a great holiday gift treat!)
FAQs
It can be either! Some torrone are hard like candy, while others can be soft and chewy. It depends on how it is made, and what ingredients are used.
Torrone is the Italian word for nougat, but the root word possibly derives from the latin “torrere” meaning charred, which is in reference to the toasting of the nuts used in the recipe. Interestingly, in Spain, nougat is called turrón, which may share the same Latin root!
Like torrone, you can serve this version after dinner, or after any other dessert! Torrone is commonly enjoyed during the holidays, but feel free to enjoy any time you like.
More Italian dessert recipes
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Marshmallow Torrone Recipe
This marshmallow torrone treat has chocolate, hazelnuts, and of course, marshmallow goodness layered between two wafers for an easy and delicious sweet! Crunchy, chewy, and chocolatey – you won't be able to resist!
Ingredients
- 400 g marshmallows
- 2 wafer sheets 8" x 12" sheet
- 2.5 cups hazelnuts
- 250 g milk chocolate chips
- 150 g semi sweet chocolate chips
- 6 tbsp butter sliced into pieces
- 1 tbsp liqueur or vanilla extract (amaretto or liqueur of your choice)
Instructions
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Pre-heat oven at 350 degrees. When oven is ready, place hazelnuts in sheet pan, and place pan in oven to toast the hazelnuts for about 10-15 minutes, or until hazelnuts are fragrant.
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In a large glass bowl (or an other microwave-safe bowl), combine the marshmallows and butter. Once melted, take bowl and then mix with spatula. Depending on how strong your microwave is, this could take anywhere from 1-2 mins. I usually work in 30 second increments.
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Add in milk chocolate chips, and semi-sweet chocolate chips, and microwave until melted. Mix again until chocolate is evenly distributed in the mixture, and it's a deep brown color.
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Add in hazelnuts and liqueur or vanilla extract to bowl with melted ingredients, and mix one more time.
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Get two wafer sheets ready, and working quickly, pour ingredients from the bowl over one of the wafer sheets, and spread mixture until the wafer sheet is covered.
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Put other wafer sheet on top to enclose the mixture. Then, place a sheet of parchment paper on the top wafer sheet, and weigh down with something heavy (e.g. books or something to press down), and leave weight on for 30 minutes.
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After thirty minutes, check to see if wafers are sealed, and once ready, cut into diamond shapes. Serve and enjoy, or store in freezer for later!
Recipe Notes
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- This recipe will yield about 30 pieces of torrone, along with 10-15 pieces of “scraps” ie. corner pieces, pieces where one of the wafer sheets have fallen off, etc
- The torrone pieces for this recipe are cut into 3-inch wide pieces from tip to tip.
- Be creative and try different combinations of chocolate, nuts, and liqueur to make your own version based on favorite flavors
-
- Serve this treat as an “after dessert” dessert for a fun surprise for friends and family
-
- Make a batch and store for later, or give as a gift (makes for a great holiday gift treat!)
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