Marcia Simmons
Amaretto is an Italian liqueur that tastes like almonds, though it's made from apricot kernels. It's a happy marriage of bitter and sweet, equally at home in a brandy cocktail as it is in biscotti. It's fun to create a personalized mix of spices, nuts, and fruit for an amaretto that tastes completely different than anything you can find in a shop. Controlling how much sugar goes in is the biggest advantage to making it at home.
Notes:
Many health food stores carry apricot kernels, but you can also order them online. They look like almonds, but are bitter.
Mahlab is the stone of a sour cherry, used frequently in Mediterranean cooking. It's also known as English cherry or rock cherry. Many spice shops and Mediterranean markets carry it, but you can also order it online.
If you cannot get 100-proof vodka, standard 80-proof vodka will also work.
Straining through a coffee filter is a slow process, but it is necessary to remove the fine sediment.
You can substitute white sugar for the turbinado sugar or vice versa. Keep in mind that turbinado sugar is much richer, so you'll have to adjust by taste in the final product. Use caution when caramelizing sugar, since it will be scalding hot. It will turn to hard candy if you combine it with a cool liquid, so it is important you use hot simple syrup to mix. When adding the sugar mixture, start by adding less than you think you'll need and then tasting, especially if you choose to add vanilla extract at the end.
Special equipment: mortar and pestle, fine-mesh sieve, coffee filter, two sauce pots
Ingredients
yield: makes about 3 cups, active time 30 minutes, total time About 4 weeks
1 cup dried apricots
1 1/2 cup distilled water (divided)
1/4 cup apricot kernels
1/4 cup raw almonds
1 tablespoon fennel seed
1 teaspoon mahlab (sour cherry stones)
1 allspice berry
1 cardamom pod
1 1/2 cups 100-proof vodka (divided)
1 cup brandy
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup turbinado sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
Method
Chop the dried apricots coarsely and soak them in 1 cup warm distilled water to rehydrate, about 30 minutes.
Chop the apricot kernels and almonds coarsely. Smash fennel, mahlab, allspice, and cardamom with the mortar and pestle. They should just be broken, not finely ground.
Once the apricots are soft, dump any excess water and place the apricots in a sealable glass jar along with the spices. Pour in 1 cup of vodka and all the brandy. Seal and shake the jar. Let steep for 25 days, shaking frequently.
Strain out the solids through the sieve, pressing down to extract as much liquid as possible then filter through a strainer lined with a large coffee filter.
While the liquid is filtering, caramelize the white sugar by cooking it over medium heat in a sauce pot, stirring frequently. It will start to melt into a brown liquid. At the same time, in a second sauce pot, boil the turbinado sugar and 1/2 cup of water on medium heat to make simple syrup.
After about 10 minutes, the white sugar will be completely caramelized and the turbinado sugar and water will be completely integrated into a simple syrup. Turn off the heat for the simple syrup, and reduce the heat on the caramelized sugar to low. Slowly pour the hot simple syrup into the caramelized syrup a little bit at a time, stirring to incorporate it so that it doesn't harden, then slowly add the remaining 1/2 cup of vodka. Small chunks may form, but they will melt as you continue to cook it. Once it is a thick mixture with no chunks, pour it into a glass jar to cool.
After the amaretto liquid has passed through the coffee filter, add the sugar mixture (and vanilla extract, if desired) to taste. Once you are happy with the level of sweetness, let the combined mixture rest for 1 to 3 days before use. Store at room temperature for 6 months.
I've heard some serious trash talking about amaretto—how it's too sweet or how it's for people who don't like the taste of alcohol. To those people I say: back up and leave my baby alone. Then, try a real Italian amaretto. If all you know are the sugary, bottom-shelf Amaretto Sours from bad nightclubs or your first time at a happy hour, you will revel in the beauty and balance that is quality amaretto.
I've lived my life by the maxim that everything consumable with an Italian name is going to be hands-down fantastic. And amaretto is no exception. It's a liqueur that tastes like almonds, though it's made from apricot kernels. It's a happy marriage of bitter and sweet, equally at home in a brandy cocktail as it is in biscotti.
What's Available to Buy
Amaretto is easy to find in most liquor stores. For about $20, Disaronno Originale and Lazzaroni both have a delicate bittersweet taste. The usual suspects that make a variety of liqueurs also make amaretto—Bols, DeKuyper, Hiram Walker—for about half the price. These are great as a supporting player in a cocktail or for cooking, but they're not exactly sipping quality.
Why DIY?
The reasons to make your own are more artistic than practical.
Since amaretto isn't a rare or particularly expensive liqueur, the reasons to make your own are more artistic than practical. It's fun to create a personalized mix of spices, nuts, and fruit for an amaretto that tastes completely different than anything you can find in a shop. In the case of liqueurs, controlling how much sugar goes in is the biggest advantage, too. Most storebought liqueurs are super sweet. When I was experimenting with a flavor profile, I wanted something with a more pronounced bitterness that would mix well with brandy and whiskey—edging closer to an amaro than a sweet liqueur. So in addition to apricot kernels, I also used cherry stones.
I also recommend singing "amaretto" to the tune of the French song "Alouette" as you prepare your ingredients. ("Amaretto, gentille amaretto ...") Sure, it's from the wrong country and is actually about plucking the feathers off a bird, but I'm pretty sure it enhances the flavor.
When you sip amaretto, maybe you to wonder what it would taste like with a bit of cinnamon or honey. Or perhaps in your imagination there's an even sweeter dessert amaretto with strong vanilla notes or a hint of chocolate. The beauty of DIY amaretto isn't in concocting a clone of the commercial stuff, but in indulging your fantasies of what your perfect amaretto would be. There's a bit of a waiting game when making amaretto, since it steeps for several weeks. However, it's really rewarding when you can take an unusual group of ingredients and unite them to make something special.
This is a good sipping liqueur or addition to Champagne, club soda, and even hot chocolate and egg nog. It's also a good companion for whiskey or brandy. If you like Amaretto Sours, you can mix your homemade amaretto with some
or lemon juice. I think adding a bit of bourbon into the mix makes for a much better version of an Amaretto Sour. (You can tweak this
recipe by using a 3/4 ounce to an ounce of whiskey and a shot of amaretto in place of the whiskey.)
Your amaretto will also come in handy for baking, adding a little flair to scones, clafouti, and tarts
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