Marzipan is a sweet confection often used to mold into fruits or animals. It is also layered on cakes, such as birthday or wedding cakes. It is made up primarily of almond paste and sugar. There may be times when a recipe calls for marzipan, but it is unavailable to you. Or, maybe you're allergic to almonds and you're looking for a substitute. If for whatever reason you need to substitute marzipan in a recipe, here are a few solutions for you.

Do-It-Yourself Marzipan

If you're lacking marzipan for a recipe, here's a quick method of making a batch of your own. To make a batch of do-it-yourself marzipan that will equal 2 ½ cups of marzipan in a recipe, mix together 2 cups of almond paste with 1 cup of powdered sugar and 2 tbsp of corn syrup. Stir them up thoroughly and you have a do-it-yourself marzipan substitute.

Almond Paste

For a quick and dirty solution, almond paste can substitute marzipan in a pinch. In this case, you will need to adjust the sugar in your recipe to make up for the loss of sweetness between almond paste and marzipan.

A Nut-Free Marzipan

If you're not a fan of almonds or you're allergic to them, here's a quick solution for a nut-free marzipan substitute. Shift 5 oz of icing sugar. Mix it together with 5 oz of semolina and 2 tsp of custard powder. Beat and egg white and add it to the mix. Add 2 tsp of either vanilla extract or orange flower water for some flavoring. Mix everything together until a firm paste develops.

Coconut Marzipan

Here's another substitute for marzipan that doesn't include almonds. This substitute instead replaces it with coconut. Here's how you whip up a batch of this marzipan substitute. Mix together 1 ½ cups of icing sugar and 1 cup of dry coconut. Add 1 egg yolk and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, and stir until you get a solid mass. Knead the mixture and roll it out. You can then use it as a substitute for marzipan.

Sugarless Marzipan

Here's a substitution for marzipan if you're worried about its sugar content. It uses an artificial sweetener, so if you're allergic or otherwise have an adverse reaction to artificial sweeteners, this may not be the best choice for you.

Process 6 oz of slivered, blanched almonds in a food processor. When they are finely ground, remove them and add 1 cup of an artificial sweetener, such as Splenda, 2 tbsp of liquid egg substitute, 2 tsp of almond extract and 1 tsp of lemon juice. Mix them together until well combined. Use as a marzipan substitute.

There is no one substance that can be used as a marzipan substitute. These are just a few examples of marzipan substitutes that you can create. Use them to be creative and find a marzipan substitute that can fit all of your needs.