It seems that the Picti, the current Scots, were fond of this and drank it during the summer solstice. The original recipe is lost in the mists of time. The Italic one, imported with the French “liqueur de brou de noix”, comes from Modena. Each family has its own recipe. Even Pellegrino Artusi published one.
This is my version that I have been making for years. Every summer I have to resist the temptation to drink it before the required five-month maturity!
Nocino: Walnut liqueur
- Preparation time: 30 minutes
- Ingredients for 1-liter bottle of Nocino
- Difficulty: Easy recipe
- Ingredients
- 2 cups and 2 tablespoons (500 ml) of 90% pure alcohol for spirits
- 13 soft shelled walnuts
- 1 clove
- Zest of 1 untreated lemon
- 1 teaspoon of ground coffee
- 1 cinnamon stick
- For the syrup:
- 1 cup and 1 tablespoon (250 ml) of water
- 7 oz (200 grams) of sugar
- Instructions
- Wash the walnuts well in the walnut husks. Cut them into four.
- Infuse the walnut husks, the peeled lemon rind, the coffee, the cloves, and the cinnamon with the alcohol in the jars for 40 days. Leave the jar in a dark, dry place and move it every day.
- After this time, prepare a syrup by mixing the sugar with the water in a saucepan until it is completely dissolved. Bring to a gentle boil, then turn off the heat and let it cool.
- Filter the alcohol and add it to the cold syrup.
- Bottle after filtering the liqueur with a strainer covered with sterile gauze.
- Leave it in a dry and dark place for at least 5 months before consuming it. It is usually prepared at the end of June and can be eaten at Christmas.
Tips to ensure the success of the dish:
- You need to put on latex gloves to avoid staining your hands when you cut the husks.
- The syrup should not be cooked for too long because otherwise the water evaporates and it becomes too sweet.
