Nocino (Walnut Liqueur) and Honeyed Walnuts

Walnuts have magical properties at Midsummer in Italy and are used to make a special liqueur called Nocino. People go into the woods to collect walnuts on the night of San Giovanni (June 23) when the shells are still green and soft. They are collected in multiples of 21 (the 3 of the Trinity times the 7 virtues), immersed in alcohol with special spices or lemon rind and left for 40 days (the same amount of time St John wandered in the desert). Some say the green walnuts can only be harvested by women in bare feet with wooden scythes.

Anna Tasca Lanza in The Flavors of Sicily offers a recipe for Nocino, whose mysterious, almost medicinal flavor, she compares to liqueurs made by medieval monks. Once you have picked your green walnuts, cut them into quarters. (Wear gloves and protect your surfaces as green walnuts exude a colorless liquid, that upon exposure to air turns brown and dyes everything it touches, permanently.) For every ten walnuts use one cup of sugar, a small piece of cinnamon stick, two whole cloves, a tablespoon of chopped lemon zest and one quart of vodka. Combine these ingredients, seal in a jar, and leave in the sun for forty days. Strain the liqueur (you can adjust the flavor at this point by adding water if it’s too strong), bottle it and put it away in a cool, dark place to age until I Morti, All Soul’s Day, November 2.

For those of you who are looking for something a little lighter, here’s a recipe I found on the internet which combines walnuts with another midsummer treat: honey.

Combine one and a half cups sugar, a half cup honey, a dash of salt in a saucepan. Bring to a boil then cook, without stirring, until a small amount of mixture forms a firm ball when dropping in cold water. This will be about 242° on candy thermometer. Remove syrup from heat and stir in eight ounces of walnuts and a half teaspoon of vanilla extract. Let cool slightly. Stir until thicken and creamy. Pour out onto waxed paper; using 2 forks, separate walnuts.

Found the great photo at this web site, Foreign Remarks, by Rebecca Helm-Ropelator. She also provides a recipe for nocino.

The photo of the jug of walnuts steeping in alcohol comes from this web site which also has a recipe and instructions.

Another great blog entry about nocino: she descibes the look as similar to motor oil but the flavor as nutty and sweet and she says creates an odd sensation as it makes its way down to your stomach. It’s often used as a digestive, to soothe an upset stomach. It seems to be the perfect drink for winter which is when it’s ready to drink.