From The Food Encyclopedia by Jacques Rolland and Carol Sherman
An almond-flavored liqueur made from apricot pits. A wholly unaccredited legend has it that the recipe was given to an Italian painter, Bernardino Luini, in the 16th century by an innkeeper who was the model for the Virgin Mary in his wall painting of the nativity at Saronno. As the months passed, the girl, whose name has since been forgotten, fell in love with Bernardino. To show her feelings for him, she gave him a gift of sweet almond-flavored liqueur that she had made from the trees growing in her garden. The year was 1525, and that bottle is said to have been the first Di Saronno Amaretto. It has been commercially produced since the 19th century.
