Homemade Nocino: Spicy Walnut Liqueur with Cloves & Vanilla

A booze that's damn near biblical - not only because of its rich smooth spicy flavor of walnuts, clove, vanilla and cinnamon but it must sit in the sun for 40 days and 40 nights as the first step in making it! Pour a glass and serve alongside creamy vanilla panna cotta or topped on gelato for a decadent end to the meal.

A thriving local tradition is making homemade liquor - from grappa infused with fruits & herbs, to visner & visciolino (cherry liquors), nocino (walnuts) & many more! Whenever offered a homemade digestivo (after dinner drink) you must oblige! It is homemade & thus a gift from the house....sometimes a wonderfully delicious drink that you are beggin for more and other times...WOW! absolute firewater! In Italy it's easy to find 95%-97% pure alcohol at any where from the hardware store to the "Costco" surplus shopping stores. And with a walnut grove a kilometer down the road from our farmhouse, this has become a classic in our house.

Picking walnuts with my cousin

I 've told the story before but many of my homemade liquors are recipes from the wonderful Mamma Mochi teaching me her age old recipes of making digestivi. She is my mentor of sorts when it comes to all things 'spirits'! As usual, the recipe varies depending on where you live. 

This Nocino recipe for example uses whole green nuts and MUST sit in the sun & stirred for 40 days, then brought in to sit in the dark for another 30 days before you filter. After that, the first pour is traditionally on Christmas Eve! ...maybe I'll leave a little out for Babbo Natale this year!

Nocino
Walnut Liqueur

25 green young walnuts
1 kilo (or just a bit less) of sugar
1 liter of pure alcohol (grappa, everclear or vodka)
250 grams of water
stick of vanilla
stick of cinnamon
5 -7 cloves

Mix together well.
Let sit in sun for 40 days - stirring & mixing the sugar each day.
Then let sit for another month in cool dark storage.
Filter & bottle.
You can let the nocino age if you would like - some prefer to drink immediately & those shelf the bottle for 2 years or more! Traditionally, the first glass should be poured on Christmas Eve.

There is also a recipe for the 'used nuts' with Marsala ...coming soon!

Maria Mochi, my mentor

Homemade Spirits: Wild Cherry Liquor - Visciolino Digestivo

 A thriving local tradition in Le Marche is making homemade liquors/liqueurs to be served after dinner as a digestivo.  Using pure alcohol or grappa infused with fruits & herbs such as visciolino (wild cherry), nocino (walnut vanilla), brugnolino (wild plum/sloe) & many more!

Visciole is a tart wild cherry found in abundance in the Candigliano Valley of Northern Le Marche and its leaves make the most delicious & delicate after dinner cherry digestivo. Visciolino is made with 100 leaves of the cherry tree + 10 leaves from a peach tree along with red wine, sugar & pure alcohol. The recipe below is simple & passed to me by our dear neighbor Mama Mochi, traditionally made at the end of May/early June.

Wild Cherry Liqueur

Visciolino

1 liter of red wine
100 leaves of visciole (wild cherry tree)
10 leaves of a peach tree

Let soak for 10 days & filter.

Add 600 grams of sugar
1/2 liter of grappa or pure alcohol

Mix well, incorporating the sugar.

Bottle & enjoy! You can let it continue to season or age as well - keep in cool dark storage.

La Moretta - Caffè with Liquor & a Twist of Lemon

La Moretta, Moretta Fanese

Moretta Fanese or better known in these parts as "la moretta" is a local specialty of caffè spiked with liquor (a mix of anise, rum and brandy), sweetened with sugar and the signature twist of lemon! Moretta Fanese was born in the seaside village of Fano. Sailors and fishermen from the Marche port may have created the drink, to keep warm and leave for the Sea invigorated!

It is strong and sweet, and usually drunk after meals as a digestive.  With a belly full of grilled fish, 'una moretta' is just what the doctor ordered! (Literally as well - because Dr. Gaggi LOVES a good moretta Fanese!

La Moretta, Moretta Fanese

(Recipes vary from house to house)

fresh brewed strong coffee - preferably caffè (espresso)
twist of lemon (lemon rind)
spoonful of sugar (optional)
equal parts: rum, anise (Varnelli or Sambucca) and brandy

If you have a steamer: Heat rum, anise and brandy slowly over low heat. Then add the sugar and lemon rind, mix until it's dissolved.

(OR Make a 'poor man's double boiler. Mix the liquor together into a heat safe glass/bottle. Place in double boiler and warm over low heat.  Place the lemon zest and sugar in a glass and then pour warm booze over top.)

Pour into a small glass or espresso cup (make sure the lemon rind is in the cup too). Then gently pour the fresh espresso into the glass. Locals like to keep the layers (liquor, coffee, coffee froth) intact - so don't mix it up - just drink.

Strawberries + Limoncello

 Fresh picked strawberries from the garden with homemade limoncello - a simple dessert that is sheer summer bliss!  This delicious dessert, perfect for a hot night, may have only two ingredients but if you want to make it from scratch you are going to need about 2 weeks.  You can always cheat and buy a fancy bottle of limoncello or limoncino but if you have a little patience you will be great rewarded! 

Strawberries macerated in limoncello - it couldn't get any easier than 1, 2, 3:

1. Clean and cut your strawberries
2. Drizzle atop limoncello, mix & let sit for about an hour
3. Serve with fresh whipped cream or mascarpone & mint and a glass of frozen homemade limoncello!

Homemade Limoncello (Recipe from the Amalfi Coast)

  Perfect for a hot summer night after you dinner al'fresco - a shot of frozen homemade limoncello - sweet & tart, instantly refreshing.  You can always cheat and buy a fancy bottle of limoncello or limoncino but if you have a little patience you will be great rewarded! 

Here's the no-fail, hands-down best, straight from the Amalfi Coast - Limoncello Recipe!

Homemade Limoncello

Rinds of 6-7 lemons (no whites) - use a potato pealer
1/2 liter of pure alcohol (or flavorless vodka)
1 liter of water
500 gr. sugar

Let the lemon rinds soak in alcohol for 10-12 days
Filter the lemon rinds.
Make a simple syrup with the sugar & water (warming the water on the stove & incorporating all the sugar). Wait for the sugar water to cool.
Combine the simple syrup with the alcohol & mix.
Bottle & place in the freezer.
Serve cold!

Cherries in Limoncello

Fresh picked cherries macerated in homemade limoncello, it doesn't get much better than that! A perfect combination of sweet & tart and to top it off with a spoonful of whipped cream!

Serves 4

 Pound of pitted cherries
3-4 leaves of mint, plus more for garnish
2-4 tablespoons of limoncello (depending on how boozy you like it)
white sugar
2 tablespoons heavy cream

Toss cherries with liquor in a bowl with a little sugar, if cherries are tart add more sugar, if cherries are already sweet you can omit the sugar. Refrigerate for an hour or two.

In a separate bowl whip the cream, chopped mint & a spoonful of sugar of two. Whipped cream should have just a hint of sweetness to it - not sugary.

Spoon cherries with syrup into a pretty serving dish or cup (we use a martini glass) and top with a couple spoon full of fresh whipped cream.  Garnish with fresh mint. Enjoy!

Arancello - Sicilian Blood Orange Liquor

  A new spin on the classic limoncello is arancello, use Sicilian blood oranges instead of lemons from Positano for a lovely liquor with a bold bright flavor. A no-fail recipe (orange rinds, grain alcohol, sugar & water) means it's a perfect introduction to making homemade liqueurs! I can't cook to save my life, but I have become a pro at infusing liquors from limoncello to nocino (walnut & vanilla),  visciolino (wild cherry), prugnolino (wild plum/sloe) & now arancello.

Bottle, freeze & serve for a refreshing digestivo (after dinner drink) any time of year.

Arancello (Orange Liquor)

1/2 liter of pure grain alcohol (you can also use grappa, vodka or everclear)
the skin of 5 organic Sicilian blood oranges (careful not to skin the orange too deep - you don't want the white pith)
1/2 kilo of sugar
1 liter of water

In a large jar with a lid, soak the orange-rind peels in the alcohol and leave in a cool dark place for about 14 days.
After it has sat for 14 days or so, filter the rinds from the alcohol. Boil the water & sugar, making a simple syrup, stirring to dissolve all the sugar in the water. Then add the orange flavored alcohol. Bottle.
I make about 10 liters of this liquor so I place 1 bottle in the freezer ready to serve and the rest in a cool dark place. Arancello, like limoncello will last a year or more in proper storage.
If the alochol is too strong of a flavor, it is also nice to serve it with a drop of heavy cream or dollop of whipped cream atop - then it is referred to as Crema di Arancello.

Preparing homemade Arancello - orange liquor