Oyster Liquor

The natural juice from freshly opened oysters. It should always be clear with a clean and briny aroma. Discard oysters with cloudy liquor. If there are pieces of shell or other grit inside the oyster, rinse it before cooking. The shell will refill with juice.

Marzipan

A pliable mixture of finely ground almonds, sugar and egg white. It is used as a filling and to make confections and decorations. It can be tinted, rolled into sheets, cut into strips or molded into various shapes. It is available at supermarkets in tubes or plastic-wrapped logs.

Gnocchi

Pronounced: NYOH-kee

Small Italian dumplings made of potatoes or semolina. Eggs or cheese can be added to the dough. It is shaped by hand, cooked in boiling water and served, like pasta, with several different types of sauces.

Dragees

Pronounced: dra-ZHAY

These are hard candies, originally almonds with a hard sugar coating. The name is from the Greek for honey-coated almonds.