. . it isn't going to make a huge difference. Omitting the brandy you might use dry sherry instead of the white wine, but that's the only change I'd suggest.

I went with the brandy out of tradition, as in Dione Lucas' recipe, but went with the white wine most others use instead of her dry sherry (because I have lots of white wine and not a lot of dry sherry). She used 1/4 cup but without the brandy I'd go for 1/2 cup. Most recipes today don't use the brandy.