Limoncello

[Dana]

We brought a bottle of limoncello home from Italy last year (wish we'd have brought a Brunello instead). It's been sitting on the dining room table in a neat little wine holder. Anyway, what should I do with it? Mixers? Drinks?

HELP

[mixmaster b]

Here is one idea:

1 tsp grappa

1/2 oz limoncello

in champagne flute

fill with Prosecco

This was from the Babbo cookbook, minus the sugarcube called for (ech--too sweet.)

There may be a few more recipes there or in one other book I have in mind. I will check this evening.

Dana, does a small shot after dinner hold no appeal? I like it cold from the freezer in a small glass, but I don't get around to having it very often.

Posting this recipe reminds me I want to start a champagne cocktail thread. Apologies in advance for multiple posts of the above recipe.

[bushey]

Keep it in the freezer and serve as an after dinner drink. Pretty wonderful stuff.

[Ron Johnson]

What bushey said. Put in the freezer ASAP. Then serve it in chilled vodka glasses (tall narrow shot glasses) for dessert. Its good with a not too sweet cookie or cake.

[Dana]

Thanks for all the great ideas -- more are always welcome. We really had no idea what to do with it. Someone in our group recommended it, and after all the wine and grappa we'd consumed that night, I surprised we didn't buy the whole restaurant!!! I will move it immediatly from the table to the freezer.

[guajolote]

I've made a "lemon margarita" with it when I ran out of Cointreua, it was great.

2 parts tequila

1 part limonecello

1 part lemon juice

Shake in cocktail shaker and serve on rocks with (or without) salt on the rim

[mixmaster b]

I've made a "lemon margarita" with it when I ran out of Cointreua, it was great.

2 parts tequila

1 part limonecello

1 part lemon juice

Shake in cocktail shaker and serve on rocks with (or without) salt on the rim

Ooh, this sounds good!

Okay,

I had a look in the Babbo book and there is another recipe:

Amarina

1 tsp Angostura bitters

1 sugar cube

Put the bitters in a spoon, add sugar cube, grop into flute. Add:

1/2 oz limoncello

prosecco

Have not tried this but it sounds nice.

Here are some recipes from my friends' book, Cocktail Parties with a Twist. The recipes call for lots of bothersome fresh squeezed (i.e. by you ) juices and such, but all their drinks are marvelous!

This one is good:

Maiden's Blush

1 oz vodka

1/2 oz limoncello

1 oz tangerine juice

1/2 oz raspberry juice

Shake w/ ice, strain, serve.

I haven't tried this:

Sheets to the Wind

1 1/2 oz vodka

1/2 oz limoncello

1 oz fresh raspberry juice

1 oz fresh peach juice

Shake w/ ice, strain, serve garnished with sugared raspberries.

If you experiment a bit, I bet you could get a very nice (and much simpler) drink with vodka, limoncello, and some citrus juice (orange, tangerine, grapefruit, or blood orange) served either on the rocks or strained into a cocktail glass.

Let us know how the limoncello-ing goes!

[bushey]

At a friend's holiday brunch yesterday I tried some Crema di Lemoncello (that's the way it was spelled on the bottle). Very nice! Tasted a bit like vodka with melted lemon sherbet.

[Jim Dixon]

I also like it over crushed ice...and a shot added to good iced tea in the summer is great.

Jim

[Dana]

Last night, we went to the neighbors and had limoncello and sparking wine, and it was terrific. Sorta like those hard lemonade thingys, but sooooo much better. Thanks for all the suggestions - we'll be trying them all sooner or later. I can hardly wait for ice tea weather (not far off, here in south Texas - I opened windows today)

[rslux]

Mario B did a whole "Mario Eats Italy" episode about limoncello and what to do with it. Check the FoodTV archives.

[JAZ]

If you decide you like limoncello, it's very easy to make. Plus, making it gives you the added advantage of being able to make it as sweet or tart as you like it.

[KatieLoeb]

I also like it over crushed ice...and a shot added to good iced tea in the summer is great.

Jim

I serve this to guests and call it Tuscan Tea in the summertime!

It's delicious drizzled over vanilla ice cream.

It's delicious as a frozen shot next to a buttery piece of pound cake topped with raspberries.

It's delicious with just a tiny splash added to a margarita for citrusy flavor.

It's delicious with a splash at the bottom of a champagne flute and filled up with sparkling wine as a lemony kir royale alternative.

It's really easy to make limoncello at home. The secret is to add the peel of ONE lime to the peels of a dozen lemons and soak in a jar to cover with good vodka (I usually use 100 proof Smirnoff to soak in and then dilute with something tastier) for six or eight weeks in a dark place, shaking and checking for strength every few days. When it's as lemony as you like, you dilute with simple syrup and more vodka/water to taste. Voila! Great to give as gifts in pretty bottles.

[Hickory]

The secret is to add the peel of ONE lime to the peels of a dozen lemons...............

When preparing the peel is it necessary to remove all the pith so you are using just the zest or do you use the whole peel?

Thanks

Brian

[trillium]

Just the zest, none of the pith. I actually think it's best with meyer lemons and no lime peel.

regards,

trillium

[alithea]

I fold a little bit of it into whipped cream, instead of vanilla extract, and serve it with berries in the summertime.

[richw]

Has anyone ever tried to make it themselves (Limoncello)? I know a local restaurateur that makes it well but he won't share his family recipe with me. If so, how did it come out?

Edited April 28, 2003 by richw (log)

[Adam Balic]

I also like it over crushed ice...and a shot added to good iced tea in the summer is great.

Jim

I serve this to guests and call it Tuscan Tea in the summertime!

Why 'Tuscan'?

[KatieLoeb]

Why 'Tuscan'?

Because Tuscan Tea is more alliterative than Amalfi Tea or Sicilian tea...

[Adam Balic]

Fair enough then. How about 'Tahoe Tea', rather then 'Long Island Tea'?

[Jim Dixon]

richw..

I know I've posted this recipe before, but it's faster to retype it than search...

carefully zest 12-15 lemons (I use Meyers, but any lemon works). try to avoid getting any of the white pith as it will make the limoncello more bitter.

soak the zest in 750 ml grain alcohol. some people use 100 proof vodka, but I've made it both ways and think the alcohol version is better (and more like the Italian version).

after a few months, strain and dilute with sugar syrup. I make a 1:1 syrup and dilute the 190 proof infused alcohol 50%, so I end up with 95 proof limoncello. If you want a less alcohol-intense version, make a syrup with more water.

I've been making this for several years and it tastes almost like my control bottle, a Don Alfonso limoncello.

Jim

[ChocoKitty]

This is the recipe I use (from Fine Cooking magazine)

15 thick skinned lemons

2- 750ml bottles 100 proof vodka

4 cups sugar

5 cups water

Limoncello must steep for 80 days.

Take one large glass jar (at least 4 quarts) with a lid. Scrub the lemons well with a veggie brush and hot water to remove any residue of pesticides or wax. Pat the lemons dry and zest them. Be sure there is no pith on your strips of zest. A vegetable peeler does this job best yielding long, wide strips. Fill the jar with one bottle of the vodka and add the zest as you go along. Place the covered jar in a dark cabinet and store it at room temperature for 40 days.

------

It's great drizzled on blueberries, but I usually just keep the limoncello in the freezer and drink it straight up.

After 40 days, combine the sugar and water in a saucepan, bring it to a boil, and cook until thickened, about 5 minutes. Let the syrup cool before adding it to the limoncello mixture, along with the other bottle of vodka. Cover and return the jar to the cupboard for another 40 days. Then, simply strain the limoncello into bottles and discard the lemon zest. You can store the bottles in a cupboard but keep one in the freezer. :)