Amaretto liqueur from moonshine. Moonshine Amaretto is Italy's almond treasure. From chokeberry
Those who are connoisseurs and ardent fans of delicious and fragrant Amaretto should learn how to make Amaretto liquor at home. Different recipes offer certain sets of ingredients, you need to choose the one that you like the most and try to repeat the taste and aroma of the liqueur yourself by making Amaretto with your own hands. Moreover, the drink at home turns out to be almost the same as vintage copies from the store.
In the article:
Main Ingredients of Amaretto
One of the main components of Amaretto is almonds. In addition to it, the composition of this drink provides for the presence of apricot kernels. To almonds and apricot cores comes a licorice aroma, which fennel seeds with anise are successfully able to fulfill. And finally, caramel, which may be absent in some recipes.
So, we present two recipes on how to cook Amaretto at home. Moreover, the first simple one will give us the opportunity to imitate the taste and aroma, and according to the second, more complex one, you can create a copy that is almost indistinguishable from the original liquor.
A simple recipe for Amaretto at home
Ingredients
- Half a liter of vodka;
- 150 ml of water;
- 50 g almonds;
- 50 g of apricot kernels;
- 350 g of granulated sugar;
- 2 teaspoons of vanilla sugar;
- a pinch of ground cinnamon;
- 2 pieces of cloves;
- 3 peas of allspice;
- 3 g of quality instant coffee.
Cooking method:
Almonds filled with boiling water should brew for two minutes, after which we remove the peel from it.
Almonds without peel are dried and then fried in a pan without oil until golden brown. At this time, you can add allspice and cloves to it, also fried, they will reveal their aroma more in the drink.
As soon as the syrup darkens, add water
We make caramel. To do this, pour sugar into a non-stick frying pan, pour 1/3 of water into it and heat it over low heat until the sugar turns brown and viscous and all the crystals disappear. The characteristic aroma of caramel will appear. At this time, it is necessary to add the remaining water and add vanillin.
Prepare a clean and dry glass jar. Put roasted almonds with cloves and allspice, apricot seeds and cinnamon in it. Pour all this with uncooled caramel.
Allow the contents of the jar to cool, add vodka and coffee to it. The mixture must be mixed well, closed with a lid and put in a dark place where it should stand for a month. Future liquor must be shaken from time to time.
After this period, the drink must be filtered through cheesecloth.
A complex Amaretto recipe for home craftsmen
This recipe will allow you to cook the so-called Amaretto Disaronno.
Recipe Ingredients:
- 750 milliliters of vodka.
- 200 milliliters of cognac, you can brandy.
- Half glass of water.
- 1/4 cup each of the following ingredients:
- raw almonds
- apricot kernels
- anise (can not be replaced with star anise)
- chopped dried apricots
- chopped peach or apricot
- 3 tablespoons of fennel seeds, 2 black peppercorns, 1 allspice peas, 2 cloves, 0.5 cm from a cinnamon pod, 2 teaspoons of finely chopped mint.
- 6 pitted cherries.
- Vanilla extract or vanillin.
- Water and granulated sugar for syrup.
First stage. Dried apricots are poured with half a glass of water and infused for 4 hours until swelling. A clean glass container (jar) is taken. Cut the fruits of peaches or apricots into pieces and put them in a jar with cherries and dried apricots. Pour half of the specified rate of vodka and the entire amount of cognac to the fruit.
Apricot kernels, almonds, mint, pepper, anise, cloves, fennel, cinnamon must be ground in a coffee grinder and sent to the mixture.
Leave the contents of the container in a place protected from direct light for about a month, shaking from time to time. Do not shake the mixture until the end of 5 days, so as not to raise the sediment.
After the expiration date, carefully drain the drink, so that the sediment remains at the bottom, and filter through cheesecloth.
Second phase. Cook caramel over low heat: add a third of a glass of water to sugar. To the resulting caramel - vanillin and the remaining water. From the same amount of granulated sugar and water, you need to make syrup by dissolving sugar in water without heating.
Connect all components in such proportions:
- 3 parts tincture;
- 3 parts - 40% vodka;
- 2 parts - sugar syrup;
- 1 part - caramel;
- 1/3 part - vanilla extract or vanillin.
This is how homemade nut liquor should turn out
Mix everything well and let it brew for another 4 days, and then strain and filter again.
So, you have learned how to make real Amaretto at home. Now you can surprise your guests by serving this legendary drink prepared by yourself.
Amaretto is a notorious dessert liqueur from sunny Italy, which, like any other alcohol, can be imitated at home. In the original, the drink has a dark brown color and a strength that ranges between 21 and 28 degrees. Its base is almonds, apricot kernels and spices such as vanilla and cinnamon, cloves and mint, etc. To decompose almond hydrocyanic acid, technologists keep it in grape syrup, which is then subject to distillation.
The hallmark of the liquor was a slightly bitter marzipan flavor and a square-shaped bottle specially created by glaziers from Murano Island (for ease of finding it).
The history of the drink is very interesting and begins long before the 1990s - the peak of his popularity in Russia. This is an old story about a girl who in 1512 was looking for the teachings of Leonardo da Vinci - Bernardino Luini for his fresco in the Dominican monastery in Milan. But he did not find the one that could become the prototype of the Madonna in Milan. Among the hundreds the most beautiful girls there was no one that would personify all the virtues of the Mother of God at once. He needed beauty, and kindness, and restraint. In search of his ideal, Bernardino left Milan and stayed in a small hotel in Saronno. It was here that he met his mistress, the woman he was looking for. And with it, your love. Luini played for time, knowing that separation was inevitable, while his beloved gave him a taste of a drink invented by the monks of the local monastery. The drink tasted of the bitterness of parting and the sweetness of rendezvous, as light as flirting and exciting as passion.
Returning to Milan, Bernardino brought with him not only the long-awaited portrait of the Madonna, but also the recipe delicious liquor called "Amaretto di Saronno".
Already in 1525, Italy started talking about him, and a little later, the whole world. Especially the Russians fell in love with the liquor, who in the critical years of perestroika, and even after it, could not imagine a single feast without a bottle of Amaretto.
"Amaretto" is drunk both in its pure form with ice and as part of cocktails, added to tea one teaspoonful, to pastries or pour over ice cream and desserts. It perfectly complements coffee, giving it new flavors. Snacks for this liquor are fruits, chocolate or nuts.
The taste of self-made Amaretto is not much different from its Italian counterpart, although, of course, the technologies and components used at home are somewhat different than at manufacturing plants.
At the same time, for making liquor at home, there are many recipes that differ both in composition and in the complexity of preparation.
Pay tribute to this delicious drink by preparing it at home.
Note:
- Apricot kernels for liquor you have to extract yourself from apricot kernels. This one is hard, but the end result is worth it.
- Vodka in recipes can be replaced with only purified moonshine, of very good quality. Thus, liquor can also be prepared from moonshine.
- It is better to take brown, cane sugar, but if it is not available, ordinary white can be perfectly dispensed with.
- It is recommended to store homemade liquor (according to our recipes) for about 1-2 years. Further, its properties and taste (in most cases) will deteriorate.
Apricot Recipe:
This is a classic recipe. Having prepared "Amaretto" on it, you will not be disappointed. It completely imitates the original both in taste and aroma.
Prepare:
- vodka - 500 ml
- apricot kernels - 50 grams
- almonds - 50 grams
- granulated sugar - 350 grams
- instant coffee - 3 grams
- cloves - 2 buds
- vanilla sugar - 2 teaspoons (or a pinch of vanilla)
- cinnamon - 1 pinch
- allspice - 3-4 peas
- water - 150 ml
You have to prepare like this:
- Almonds are poured with boiling water (not the one indicated in the recipe), incubated for 4-5 minutes and cleaned.
- Almond kernels are placed in a dry frying pan and fried until golden brown. Pour peppercorns and clove buds to it. Stand for another 1-2 minutes and pour everything onto a dish.
- Apricot kernels are split, separating the kernels from them, and the required amount is weighed. After that, they are washed and cinnamon is added to them.
- Now it's time to pour it into a dry glass container (it can be a wide-mouth bottle or a 0.75-1 liter jar).
- Separately, prepare the syrup from the sugar and water indicated in the recipe. This is best done in a non-stick frying pan. Pour granulated sugar onto it and pour 1/3 of all water (about 50 ml), heat the mixture, stirring constantly. When the sugar begins to caramelize, add the vanilla sugar and the rest of the water. Remove the syrup from the heat as soon as it starts to boil and pour over the nuts.
- When the mixture ceases to be hot (cools down), pour coffee into the container and pour in vodka.
- Seal the jar tightly and shake it thoroughly.
- The future liqueur must be kept for a month in a cool place without access to light, shaking it several times a week.
- The final stage of preparation will be the filtration of the liquor, packaging in a beautiful bottle and the most pleasant tasting moment.
In the refrigerator, this drink can be stored for 1-2 years without losing its taste.
Amaretto di Saronno.
This more complex recipe for homemade Amaretto does not imitate, but almost completely recreates the legendary liquor.
Prepare:
- vodka - 0.75 liters
- cognac (not necessarily French) - 0.2 liters
- apricot kernels - ¼ cup (i.e. about 100 ml in volume)
- almonds (raw) - ¼ cup (i.e. about 100 ml in volume)
- anise (not star anise) - ¼ cup (i.e. about 100 ml in volume)
- fennel (seed) - 3 tablespoons
- cherries (pitted) - ¼ cup (i.e. about 100 ml in volume - 5-6 pieces)
- peach or apricot (chopped) - ¼ cup (i.e. about 100 ml in volume)
- dried apricots (chopped) - ¼ cup (i.e. about 100 ml in volume)
- mint (ground leaves) - 2 teaspoons
- cinnamon - half a centimeter from the stick (grind)
- vanillin - a pinch
- dried cloves - 2 buds
- allspice - 1 pea
- black pepper - 2 peas
- water - 100 ml
- for caramel syrup: sugar - 150 grams, water - 50 ml
- for simple sugar syrup: sugar and water 1:1 (i.e. ¾ cup by volume)
You have to prepare like this:
Stage 1:
- Dried apricots pour 100 ml of water and leave for 3-3.5 hours. We take it out and send it to the bank.
- Fruits (apricots and peaches) finely chopped and fall asleep to dried apricots. We also throw cherry berries here.
- Pour the contents of the jar with half of vodka (about 350 ml) and cognac.
- The spices are ground in a mortar with almonds and kernels obtained from apricot kernels. They can be ground in a coffee grinder. The resulting powder and ground mint are also poured into a jar.
- Now our “semi-finished product” needs to be kept for a month, shaking regularly. At the same time, in the middle of the term (after 2 weeks), the fruits must be thoroughly kneaded with a wooden crush. And when 3 weeks have passed, shaking the mixture must be stopped so that a precipitate forms.
- A month later, we lower a rubber tube into the drink, and, trying not to touch the sediment, pour it into another container. After that, alcohol must be additionally filtered through a cotton-gauze filter.
Stage 2:
- Make caramel syrup using the sugar and water indicated in the recipe. This is best done in a non-stick frying pan. Pour granulated sugar on it and pour 1/3 of all water (about 20 ml). heat the mixture, stirring constantly. When the sugar begins to caramelize, add the vanilla sugar and the rest of the water. Remove the syrup from the heat as soon as it starts to boil.
- For simple sugar syrup, simply mix equal amounts of sugar and boiled water until the sugar is completely dissolved.
Stage 3:
- It's time to connect the components. To do this, you need to mix them in a certain proportion (by volume): tincture - 3 parts (300 ml), remaining vodka - 3 parts (300 ml), simple sugar syrup - 2 parts (200 ml), sugar caramel syrup - 1 part (100 ml).
- Keep the composition for 3-5 days, filter it and enjoy the amazing taste of Amaretto.
Often on the Internet you can find a recipe for the famous cherry liqueur. But we strongly do not recommend using them, for the reason that all parts of this plant contain glycosides that release benzaldehyde. This substance is so poisonous that hydrocyanic acid in comparison with it is just a child's panadol.
When preparing rowan liqueur, you also get far from Amaretto. However, this is a completely usable, but poorly stored mixture of a decoction of chokeberry berries and cherry leaves with sugar and vodka.
AT classic recipe liqueur "Amaretto" only food alcohol with a strength of 90-96% is used. However, at home, vodka is most often used. If you have good pure alcohol, take it - its amount should be half that of vodka.
Liqueur "Amaretto" at home is not at all difficult to prepare. You just need to follow the correct sequence of actions.
Let's start with the preparation of the dye. For tinting, you will need to prepare “caramel” - pour three tablespoons of sugar into a pan or other metal dish and fry until brown.
When the brown sugar begins to melt, it will need to be quickly poured into the syrup and mixed very well. If the caramel burns, it will be very difficult for you to clean the dishes, and the drink will be bitter.Since the liquor has a special aroma of seeds, they will also need to be added to the drink. A few pieces will need to be crushed with a hammer or a kitchen knife handle - crush the shell into several pieces.
Throw them in a glass jar and immediately fill with vodka. Close the jar with a lid and put in a warm place for 3 hours.
Pour the tinted syrup and vanilla sugar into the tincture, mix well and put in a warm place for another 10 days. Don't put the drink under bright sunlight, otherwise it will lose its unique color.
Strain the finished drink, filter well and bottle. The liqueur is ready to drink!
Amaretto liqueur contains vitamin B17, which has strong antioxidant and antitumor properties. That is why it can be used for medicinal purposes. This liqueur is very tasty and fragrant. However, we should not forget that it is very strong, so it is advisable to drink it only in moderation.
Options for drinking Amaretto liqueur
There are a lot of options on how to drink Amaretto liquor correctly - it all depends on desires and personal preferences. The most common methods of use:
Liqueur can be added to coffee, hot chocolate and other soft drinks. Proportions are measured by eye and by personal preference.
You can mix Amaretto liqueur with Coca-Cola, Tonic, and even ordinary sparkling water.
Liquor can also be consumed in its pure form, as a separate drink - pour into a glass with ice. Many prefer to drink liquor in combination with orange juice or make a refreshing drink by adding a few lime wedges or mint leaves. It is often used in cooking - added to desserts and ice cream, to give an almond flavor.
You can experiment with what to drink Amaretto liqueur - you can add it to various cocktails and create new and unique recipes.
amaretto recipe
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Preparation time: 2-3 hours + 1 month for steeping. Amount of drink at the outlet: Kitchen appliances and utensils: frying pan, saucepan, spatula for stirring. Mortar for grinding, a jar with a tight lid. Gauze, cotton swab, watering can. 400-420 ml.
Ingredients
How to choose the right ingredients
- To make amaretto with your own hands according to this recipe, you will need vodka or well-peeled homemade moonshine strength of 40-45 degrees.
- The original liquor is made from wild (bitter) almonds, but at home, ordinary sweet almonds are used for this. It does not have such a high concentration of hydrocyanic acid.
- Instead of ground cinnamon, you can take a stick - 1.5-2 cm will be enough.
- Choose instant coffee of high quality, without a sour taste.
- If desired, replace vanilla sugar with vanilla (in this case, the powder is needed on the tip of a knife).
Step by step cooking
- Before making amaretto at home, prepare the almonds. To do this, take 50 g of raw nuts and pour boiling water over them. Let it brew for five minutes. Drain the water, separate the skin from the nuts.
- Put the almonds in a dry frying pan, dry them over medium heat, then wait until the kernels are browned. Grind 2 cloves and 2-4 peas of allspice, add to the almonds. It is enough to hold the pan on the fire for about a minute until the spices reveal the aroma.
- Chop nuts, 50 g apricot kernels, a pinch of cinnamon.
- Pour all ingredients into a jar. Take care of the syrup: heat 150 ml of water, pour 150 g of sugar, 2 teaspoons of vanilla sugar, 3 g of instant coffee into it. Stir the syrup well to dissolve the dry ingredients.
- Pour the syrup into the spice jar. Let it cool to room temperature, and then pour in 500-550 ml of vodka or moonshine. Stir the drink again and cover it with a lid.
- Insist liquor for a month. Any dark place is suitable for this. The temperature should be room temperature.
- A month later, you need to start filtering amaretto: at home, the drink is first filtered through two layers of gauze, and then passed through a cotton filter. To do this, insert a cotton swab into the watering can, after which the drink is poured.
Varieties
If 50 years ago the alcohol market was not full of varieties of amaretto, then the question of choice did not arise at all. Now things are more complicated. Small companies can produce a liquor infused not with herbal extracts, but with dyes and flavors.
Therefore, it is very important to know the most famous brands. The oldest and most trusted brands are Amaretto Disaronno and Amaretto Lazzaroni:
- Amaretto di Saronno, today called Disaronno Originale, has a characteristic bittersweet taste of almonds (although it does not contain almonds or any other nuts) and contains 28% alcohol. Known for its original appearance: Rectangular glass carafe with massive square lid. The liquor is made in Saronno, but it is sold all over the world. The company describes the composition of the drink as "an infusion of apricot oil with alcohol, burnt sugar and extracts from 17 herbs and fruits." It has a bright amber color. Despite the fact that disaronno buyers still call amaretto, but since 2001 this word has not been in the name.
- Amaretto Lazzaroni (Lazzaroni Amaretto) is a liqueur produced by Paolo Lazzaroni & Figli and positioned as "one of a kind". It is based on an infusion of amaretti disaronno biscuits, which gives a delicate almond-apricot flavor to the drink. Contains 24% alcohol. Its history began in 1718, and mass production dates back to 1851. The Lazzaroni family keeps the amaretto recipe a closely guarded secret.
There are several other brands that produce decent liquor: Italian Luxardo, Dutch Bols and De Kuyper, American Hiram Walker and Mr. Boston. Russian variants of amaretto like Amaretto San Lorenzo are rather subspecies of the drink and are significantly inferior in taste to the original.
Although Disaronno is not called amaretto now, the whole world loves and knows this particular kind of liquor. We will get to know her better.
The secret composition of amaretto
The most famous brand of amaretto liqueur, Disaronno Originale, is almost 500 years old. The manufacturer, of course, keeps the full composition of the drink secret. Only a few facts are known for certain:
- extracts from 17 fruits and herbs, along with caramelized sugar and apricot kernel oil, are infused with alcohol;
- wild apricot pits are used - poles. They differ from cultivars in their characteristic bitterness;
- wild almond kernels contain hydrocyanic acid. To neutralize it, almonds are soaked in grape alcohol;
- after the stages of soaking and infusion, the drink is distilled.
It is almost impossible to completely repeat the experiment on preparing such amaretto liqueur at home, especially without knowing all the ingredients. But there is a maximally approximate recipe. The components for it were assembled by connoisseurs in parts. Some are known from official sources from manufacturers. Others are guessed in taste. Since we will replace the wild almonds with sweet ones, and the zherdela with homemade apricots, we will introduce some spices to give the necessary bitter note.
Tricks before cooking
There are several secrets that will allow you to get a great product. Such a liqueur will not only be a welcome guest of the festive table, but also a quality ingredient for cocktails, pastries and desserts. First of all, you need to be more careful with the alcohol base: if moonshine is taken instead of vodka, then it should be highest quality, cleaned.
Apricot kernels will give the liquor an exquisite aroma.
You will also have to tinker with apricot pits, you need to get them out of the fruit with your own hands. Of course, you can buy ready-made nucleoli, but those that were mined on your own are a priority.
For a variety of taste, it is advisable to use not ordinary white granulated sugar, but brown cane.
Finally, the shelf life of homemade Amaretto liqueur does not exceed one or two years, after which the organoleptic properties of the product will rapidly deteriorate.
Recipe at home
Of course, the recipe for homemade amaretto is not too close to the original, but its taste will definitely please you. The union of a small number of components and a minimum of actions under your leadership will give birth to a wonderful liquor.
So, you will need:
- 0.5 l of alcohol (90 degrees);
- 0.5 l of water;
- 350 g of sugar;
- 250 g bitter almonds;
- 1 g cinnamon;
- 3 g coriander.
Chop the almonds and mix them with the cinnamon and coriander. Put the spices in a glass vessel and fill with alcohol. Close the jar tightly and leave to "rest" for 4 weeks in a dark, cool place.
When the tincture is ready, remove the sediment by straining the solution. Boil the sugar with water for a few minutes (until you get the consistency of syrup). Cool, add aromatic alcohol to it and pour the solution into a bottle. Forget it in a cool, dry, dark place. After 3 months, you will find homemade amaretto.
In the 90s of the last century, Amaretto was very popular among Russians. This is one of the first foreign liqueurs that appeared on the shelves of our stores, many people remember its pleasant almond taste. But gradually they began to forget about this drink and now it is difficult to find it on sale. I propose to solve the problem in a simple way– cook homemade Amaretto according to a special recipe. This is easier to do than it seems. I will tell you about all the nuances.
Amaretto- This is a sweet Italian liqueur of dark brown color with a strength of 21-28 degrees, made on the basis of almonds, apricot pits and spices. The taste of Amaretto is reminiscent of marzipan, a confection made from flour and nuts. This liqueur first appeared in 1525 in the Italian region of Saronno.
Amaretto is a dessert liqueur. It is customary to drink it in its pure form with ice or add it to a mug with tea and coffee. Amaretto goes well with fruits, chocolate, nuts, ice cream. Other snacks are usually not served with it.
Due to the availability of ingredients and ease of preparation, Amaretto liqueur can be made at home. By strictly adhering to the technology, you will get a drink whose taste will be as close as possible to the original.
Classic Amaretto Recipe
Ingredients:
- vodka - 0.5 liters;
- apricot kernels - 50 grams;
- almonds - 50 grams;
- water - 150 ml;
- granulated sugar - 350 grams;
- vanilla sugar - 2 teaspoons;
- cinnamon - 1 pinch;
- instant coffee - 3 grams;
- cloves - 2 buds;
- allspice - 3-4 peas.
Problems can only arise with apricot kernels. They are difficult to find in stores, so you have to extract them yourself from apricot seeds. Due to the laboriousness of this process, most homemade amaretto recipes do not use kernels. But without them, the taste of the liquor is not as rich and differs from the original.
Kernels can be bought at the store or prick yourself
Cooking
1. Pour boiling water over almonds, leave for 3-5 minutes, peel.
2. Dry the almonds until golden in a dry frying pan. 1-2 minutes before the end of frying, add cloves and pepper.
3. Wash the apricot kernels, add cinnamon to them and mix.
4. Pour roasted almonds and apricot kernels into a clean, dry glass bottle or jar.
5. Prepare sugar syrup. To do this, pour sugar into a non-stick pan, add 50 ml of water and heat over low heat, stirring occasionally, until the mixture has a caramel color. Then add vanilla sugar, 100 ml of water and mix.
6. Slowly pour the resulting sugar syrup into a jar of nuts.
7. After the mixture has cooled to room temperature, add vodka and coffee.
8. Close the bottle tightly, shake several times and put in a dark cool place for 30-35 days. During the infusion, I recommend periodically shaking the bottle (3-4 times a week).
9. Filter the finished homemade Amaretto through cheesecloth and pour into beautiful bottles for serving.
In a dark, cool place, this liqueur can be stored for several years.