Panforte

Ingredients

• Cooking spray
• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole or slivered almonds, toasted
• 1/2 cup whole hazelnuts, toasted
• 1/3 cup pitted prunes, coarsely chopped
• 1/3 cup dried Calimyrna figs, coarsely chopped
• 1/3 cup dried apricots, coarsely chopped
• 1/3 cup golden raisins
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons powdered sugar

Preparation

1. 1. Preheat oven to 300°.
2. 2. Coat an 8-inch round cake pan with cooking spray. Line bottom with parchment paper; coat with cooking spray.
3. 3. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife. Combine flour, almonds, and next 7 ingredients in a large bowl; stir until flour coats fruit and nuts. Set aside.
4. 4. Combine honey and granulated sugar in a small saucepan. Cook over low heat until sugar dissolves. Bring syrup to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered, 2 minutes. Carefully and quickly add hot syrup to fruit mixture; stir quickly with a wooden spoon to coat. Quickly spread mixture evenly into prepared pan, pressing lightly with back of spoon. Bake at 300° for 30 minutes (mixture will be soft and appear underdone but will firm as it cools). Cool at least 2 hours in pan on a wire rack (or cool 1 day for best results). Remove panforte from pan; remove parchment paper. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Cut into wedges. Store in refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 1 month.
5. Panforte (pan-FOHR-tay) is a cross between candy and fruit cake. This specialty from Siena is a typical Christmas dessert, but it can easily be found year-round in pastry shops throughout Italy.