This fabulous Panforte is kicking off my Arden & Amici Week of reviews. Panforte is a traditional Italian delicacy which dates as far back as the 13th Century and is made from various fruits, nuts and spices. It is baked in a shallow pan to give it a flat circular shape. The Arden & Amici Panforte is made from an exquisite combination of almonds, candied fruit and mixed spice.
I have to spare a few lines just to comment on the packaging, because it really is special. The Panforte is wrapped in decadent red and gold paper which has been folded around the cake in an expert origami style. It is definitely a product that looks great as a ready to go Christmas gift.
Inside the elegant packaging is this decadent looking Panforte. It has been edged with a band of paper bearing the Arden & Amici logo. The whole thing looks fabulous. The smell coming from this was amazing too, the scent of oranges and spice especially shine through.
The Arden & Amici Panforte comes with a sachet of icing sugar which should be sprinkled over the top before serving. It is also recommended that the Panforte be cut into thin strips and enjoyed with a strong cup of coffee or liqueur!
I love coffee so that's how I tried mine. The taste of the Panforte lived up to the delightful presentation. It is loaded with almonds, which I love, all held together with a delicious candied fruit. The almonds are large and generously distributed. Every almond had a lovely nutty taste which can often be missing from almonds as they have such a delicate flavour. They had all retained a marvellous crunch too, no soggy nuts here!
The candied fruit is mainly citrus in taste, specifically orange. It is sweet without being too sweet, and zesty without being bitter. The mixed spice is quite subtle and adds a light festive flavour. It's a marvellous combination and tastes divine with the almonds, not to mention a strong coffee!
I love the fact that it is Christmassy whilst still being different from the usual festive desserts such as mince pies and Christmas puddings. I'm currently making up a foodie gift hamper for my Mum's birthday in December and I'll be buying an Arden & Amici Panforte to go pride of place at the front of the basket!
The Arden & Amici Panforte is available at Waitrose for £5.99.
Have you ever tried a Panforte before? What's your favourite festive Italian treat?
I've never tried one of these but it sounds divine. It looks a little bit like Texas Fruitcake.
ReplyDeleteThis looks delicious! This time of year my snacking habbits switch to "what will go nicely with a hot drink?" So this sounds perfect.
ReplyDeleteWow! That looks pretty big and not too expensive. it sounds much better than a Christmas Pudding which we get every year but never eat!
ReplyDeleteHannah - Texas fruitcake? Wow I'll have to check that out!
ReplyDeleteFlipmode - Get your favourite brew on because this is perfect with a hot drink.
Anon - Don't worry, there won't be any of this Panforte leftover!
This looks really nice. I saw them in Waitrose about a month ago and I was thinking of getting one to enjoy over the Christmas period.
ReplyDeleteHowever, they seemed to stop selling them a couple of weeks back and so haven't been able to get one. They are no longer listed on the Waitrose website too. :o(
That's such a shame. I think this whole festive range by Arden & Amici was only ever going to be available over the Christmas so they must have sold out of the panforte already. Hopefully they will all be back with more next year but it's a long time to wait!
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