There is the classic crumbly kind with almonds and the tender kind with hazelnuts and chocolate. Unlike panettone, which was born in Milan, and Pandoro, originally from Verona, nougat is part of the confectionary heritage of the whole Mediterranean.

According to some torrone was born in ancient Rome, others say it came from China through the Arabs, a plausible theory considering that the tradition of this dessert (in the plain version) also belongs to Spain, Greece and France. More or less the same ingredients, basically three: nuts honey and egg whites. But only in Italy is there such a large and colourful family of nougats that follows the vocation and availability of the nuts in the area.