Not Just Another Fun Gal, But a Real Italian Delight
Truly excellent desserts can come from anywhere.
One of my favorite things to do is read cookbooks. I like to know where recipes come from. Recently, I read one of Julia Miller’s recipes for a bundt cake.
That recipe is made from a boxed cake mix with a few added ingredients, such as packaged jello, lemon extract, corn oil, eggs, and apricot nectar. Her recipe came from her momma when cake mixes became standard after the second world war. Many women had to work outside their homes and still were the principal cooks, necessitating easy, tasty recipes. Check out her medium site.
I intend to make that bundt cake in the next week or two. I’m not a great cook, but I find things I can do well and stick with them. I think this may be added to that list.
Recently I found another recipe that can be used for a dessert or a late-night drink. Again, quick and easy. My go-to.
Italian Delight
No, it’s not me. Delightful as I am, this is perfection. Personally, I prefer it as a dessert rather than a drink. It’s called an Italian Delight.
I’m sold whenever I can make a dessert with three ingredients in less than 10 minutes.
This recipe is for one person, but just increase the numbers by how many people you want to serve this to.
So here goes:
1 oz. Amaretto liqueur
1/2 oz. fresh Orange juice
1 1/2 oz. Cream or half and half
Pour ingredients over ice in a shaker, shake, and strain into a chilled glass. Garnish with a cherry.
You can substitute 1/4 teaspoon of almond extract for the amaretto, making a delicious alcohol-free alternative.
I think I would choose something different if I wanted an alcohol-free dessert.
Amaretto
Amaretto is a sweet Italian liqueur originating in Saronna in the Lombardy Region. There are many brands, but I have always chosen the DiSaronna. Amaretto is Italian for “a little bitter.”
It can be made from apricot kernels, bitter almonds, peach stones, or almonds. These are natural sources of benzaldehyde that provide the almond-like flavor of the liqueur.
Most mystery readers know the poison that is associated with the smell of almonds. Cyanide. As a cozy mystery writer, I can imagine using this dessert in a Who dunnit?
The thing is that I wouldn’t waste it knocking off someone. It’s that good. Try this and let me know.
