NATIONAL NOUGAT DAY

NATIONAL NOUGAT DAY    

National Nougat Day on March 26th celebrates a soft and chewy or sometimes hard and crunchy candy often found at the center of a candy bar. 

#NationalNougatDay

Made by whipping egg whites together and adding honey or sugar, roasted nuts, and sometimes candied fruit, some say nougat has been a sweet treat since ancient Rome. Enjoyed both as a candy all on its own or paired with chocolate or other flavorings.

Recipes range from the more traditional nougat made with almonds and honey to those with hints of citrus.

In Italy, they call it torrone. In Spain, a nougat is called turrón. The United States has a version made with corn syrup called divinity.

Three basic kinds of nougats include:

1.     White nougat – made with beaten egg whites and honey.
2.     Brown nougat – made without egg whites and has a firmer, often crunchy texture.
3.     Viennese or German nougat – chocolate and nut praline

In the United States, modern candy bar makers use a different recipe than the traditional nougat. Today they make of a mixture of sucrose and corn syrup aerated with a whipping agent such as egg white or hydrolyzed soy protein or gelatin. It is the preferred and often used ingredient of large candy companies because it is inexpensive to make and used as a filler.

Varieties of nougat are found in:
3 Musketeers, Mars, Snickers, Milky Way, Zero, Salted Nut Rolls, Reese’s Fast Break, Reese’s Whipps, Baby Ruth, and others.

HOW TO OBSERVE NATIONAL NOUGAT DAY

• Become a nougat aficionado.
  

• Or perhaps try learning the nuances of nougat.
  

• No matter how you spend the day, be sure to get a sample or two.
  

• Give a shout-out to your favorite candy maker.
  

• Be sure to share a piece, too! Use #NationalNougatDay to post on social media.

NATIONAL NOUGAT DAY HISTORY

National Day Calendar continues researching the origin of this confectionary holiday. 

• Charleston Chew

• Mars bar

• Snickers

• Milky Way

• Three Muskateers

Q. Does nougat come in different flavors?
A. Yes. There are as many nougat flavors as there are coffee syrups at your local coffee shop. Try these flavors:

• Peanut Butter

• Matcha Black Sesame

• Coffee Almond

• Chocolate Honey