Orgeat

[donk79]

On 8/10/2022 at 12:30 AM, JoNorvelleWalker said:

My present batch of orgeat is the first with the pervasive aroma of almonds and almond extract, eg. benzaldehyde.

 

This is batch 21, same recipe as batch 20?

[JoNorvelleWalker]

14 minutes ago, donk79 said:

This is batch 21, same recipe as batch 20?

 

Yes, batch 21.  Same recipe but fresh bags of apricots and almonds.  The night I noticed the benzaldehyde I had measured out a bit more orgeat than usual for my mai tai.  The flavor has not been as pronounced since.

 

Tonight I may try increasing the amount of orgeat and see what happens.  The downside of increasing the orgeat is I may run out of orgeat sooner.

 

[donk79]

But the more you run out, the more we learn!

[JoNorvelleWalker]

22 minutes ago, donk79 said:

But the more you run out, the more we learn!

 

I do my best for science...working on it now.

 

[Craig E]

On 8/8/2022 at 12:01 PM, Craig E said:

Trying out this "oat-geat":

200 g oat milk 
200 g sugar 
1 oz amaretto 
1 oz Amaro Nonino 

Blend the oat milk and sugar until the sugar has dissolved, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the amaretto and Amaro Nonino and blend for an additional 30 seconds.

 

Easier than authentic, more "green" than some other shortcut recipes. May not become my permanent replacement, but taste:effort ratio is very high.

Gave this a run in a new concoction I just invented, the Sleepover, with Appleton rum, Gran Classico, rhubarb syrup, and chocolate bitters. Maraschino cherry garnish. Goes in a number of different directions, but I think it holds together, though it is quite sweet. 

The oat-geat contributed quite a creamy taste and mouthfeel; I got a bit of banana milkshake in this. 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Batch 22.

 

90g blanched Spanish almonds

90g apricot kernels

350ml water

280g sugar

30ml orange flower water

 

Almost the same as Batch 21 except that I homogenized on low speed in an attempt to reduce the amount of foam.  I can't say I noticed any difference.

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Batch 23.

 

Same as Batch 22.  I still homogenized on low speed, as I had no separation in Batch 22.

 

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

My orgeat (batch 22) has split.  The emulsion has broken.  I can't help but wonder if the orgeat is spoiling?  This is the first time since I have been homogenizing that it has ever split.

 

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Batch 22 was poured down the drain.  Sad.  Almost always I heat the jar in the steam oven to discourage surprises.  For Batch 22 I had not.

 

Batch 23 last night was an experiment:

90g blanched Spanish almonds

90g apricot kernels

350g water

303g sugar (I was aiming for 300g)

60ml Wray & Nephew Overproof

 

I heated the orgeat longer than usual, and at a higher temperature (216F).  When cooled I stirred in the Wray & Nephew as a preservative.  I did not homogenize.  Since the mixture was thicker I was hoping homogenization would not be necessary.  Besides I was tired.  Worked fine in last night's mai tai.  So far so good.

 

 

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Batch 23 was otherwise OK but more viscous than I would have liked, which made pouring and measuring difficult.  Back to the drawing board...

 

Batch 24:

90g blanched Spanish almonds

90g apricot kernels

350g water

280g sugar

30ml Wray & Nephew Overproof

30ml orange flower water

 

What was new this time is that I skimmed off the foam layer* after homogenizing.  So far so good.

 

 

*and no, fear not, the foam did not go to waste.

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Batch 25:

90g blanched Spanish almonds

90g apricot kernels

350g water

280g sugar

30ml Wray & Nephew Overproof

30ml orange flower water

 

Same as batch 24.  Batch 24 was probably my best batch yet.  Orgeat foam is cook's treat.

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Batch 26:

90g blanched Spanish almonds

90g apricot kernels

350g water

280g sugar

30ml Wray & Nephew Overproof

30ml orange flower water

 

Same as batch 25.  Batch 25 was the same as batch 24.  As I've said orgeat foam is the cook's treat.  I added the skimmed foam to tonight's mai tai.  The result was an almond milkshake.  Typically I prefer my mai tai to be considerably less sweet.  No doubt this version would be a hit at a tiki bar.