Making Limoncello

[annecros]

I'm presently infusing a batch on my counter. It is a lemon/lime/orange combo, heavy on the lime. The intent is to make Margaritas with what cello does not get disposed of straight up!

My question is, has anyone tried to cook with the drunken zest after decanting? I wonder how it would do folded into sour cream pound cake batter, then a "cello" based glaze on the pound cake maybe?

I was also wondering if the limes and oranges also loose all color as the lemons do. The liquor is absolutely a dark chartreuse right now, and I only started the infusion Sunday. The lemon zest looks white, but it is hard to tell with the darker liquid. I can definitely pick out the orange.

I went the microplane into Everclear route for the infusion, and will go 80 proof for the additional booze.

Anne

[donbert]

My question is, has anyone tried to cook with the drunken zest after decanting? I wonder how it would do folded into sour cream pound cake batter, then a "cello" based glaze on the pound cake maybe?

I haven't had a chance to make any limoncello yet but the zest that's been soaking in grain alcohol for making bitters don't look appetizing at all. On the other hand though if you use zest to infuse simple syrup you can boil it in some of the syrup with more sugar to make candied zest. They're great for using in pastries or garnishing a granita.

[rodparsons]

Hi,

I recently had some Limoncello at an Italian Restaurant here in Australia.

Nice bit a bit of a kick to it. Which I liked but the girls didn't.

The owner makes his own I was told. He distilled 3 Kg of lemons, adds sugar and grappa (Which it suppose to be in Italy).

So since we have a tree in the back yard that has lemons the size of large grapefruits. I have derided to make some from Katie’s world renound recipe.

A trick I am told was to put the zest in a blender and washing it out of the blender into the storage jar with 100 Proof Smirnoff Vodka.

After one day the lemon taste is very strong in the vodka.

I'll let you know how it goes after a week and then the next batch for a couple of weeks.

I have numerous Italian friends waiting to tatse the first batch.

A Russian guy at work said to distille the lemons and make the vodka too.

I might try that later.

An Italian lady is bringing in a recipe for me. I’ll post it when I get it.

Cheers

Rodney

[Abra]

I've got to report that my Meyer limoncello is "not very lemony." That's a quote from Chef Metcalf, who was my beta tester, and I must say that I agree with her. It's smooth, drinkable, slighly intriguing, but not very lemony and not interesting enough to be proud of. I need to infuse something else into it if I'm going to be able to serve it in about 10 days, which has been my plan. I'm thinking ginger, lemongrass, star anise...any suggestions?

[eje]

I've got to report that my Meyer limoncello is "not very lemony."  That's a quote from Chef Metcalf, who was my beta tester, and I must say that I agree with her.  It's smooth, drinkable, slighly intriguing, but not very lemony and not interesting enough to be proud of.  I need to infuse something else into it if I'm going to be able to serve it in about 10 days, which has been my plan.  I'm thinking ginger, lemongrass, star anise...any suggestions?

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Unfortunate.

Could you use it in a cocktail instead of straight up? Perhaps in combination with a flavored simple syrup and lemon juice? Maybe a Lavender, Thyme or Tarragon infused syrup?

I don't really like Meyer Lemons until they have hung on the tree for a good long time and their orange/tangerine heritage starts to shine through. When they are young, their funky thyme-like flavor turns me off.

[Abra]

These lemons were very ripe and perfumey, so I think the problem is that their flavor was too mild, as opposed to too funky. Lavender sounds like a nice combination, and I have tons in my garden. Hmmm, a lavender limoncello cocktail.

I'm not very experienced with cocktails. The limoncello is sweetened, but lightly. Any suggestions for dilution with a lavender infusion that would neither up the alcohol (which is shockingly high already) nor the sweetness by too much? Maybe a lavender simple syrup and a sparkling wine, like a cava?

[eje]

There's an excellent limoncello and prosecco based aperitif cocktail from the Babbo cookbook called the Amarina. It uses sugar, Angostura bitters, limoncello and prosecco.

I'll PM you with the exact recipe.

I do like the idea of a lavender and Meyer Limoncello cocktail. If you use a lavender infused simple syrup the trick would be balancing the two sweet elements with enough sour to keep it interesting and still not overwhelm the palate. It might be easier with an unsweetened limoncello or lemon infused vodka.

[zoe b]

the Hub had to make dessert the other night--it was hot and watermelon was as elaborate as I was willing to get--had the B & SIL over so no need to impress!

But he put together a great dessert--he marinated strawberries in limoncello--added some sugar at my suggestion as our limoncello is powerful--made with grain alcohol.

served with cake (Entemann's Louisiana Crunch which is very good--I would eat it again) and vanilla ice cream, it was pretty delish.

And a nice side effest is that even though the strawberries are eaten, the limoncello left over turned a pretty rose color and tastes deliciously of strawberries--is good as is on ice cream.

[KatieLoeb]

There's a small gelateria here in Philadelphia that makes a Strawberry-Limoncello flavored sorbetto they call Francacella. Sounds delicious to me since Strawberry Lemonade is one of my favorite summer beverages.

Strawberry-Lemon is a great flavor combo, as is Raspberry-Lemon and Blueberry-Lemon.

I've been making a yummy cocktail with the new Stolichnaya Blueberry vodka. Here's the recipe:

2 oz. Stoli Blueberry

1 oz. Limoncello

a splash of fresh lemon juice

Fill with Sprite or 7-Up.

You can also turn it a pale sky blue with about 2 drops of Blue Curacao and not change the flavor.

Don't have a good name for it yet. It tastes like a lemon-blueberry muffin!

[zoe b]

I've been making a yummy cocktail with the new Stolichnaya Blueberry vodka.

that sounds delish--I wish I had one right now!

Blue Moon? I'm horrible at naming things

[Abra]

Mmm, those are some good-sounding ideas. What I did this time was to make a bay leaf-infused syrup and add it to half of the limoncello, then a lavender-infused syrup for the other half. Now they're resting for a week, and then we'll see. I'm planning to take eje's advice and mix them into Prosecco cocktails, if they taste decent.

[KatieLoeb]

Abra:

Please report back regardless of the results. I'm certain they'll both be delicious, but at worst, you might save one of the rest of us from the tragic experiment.

[CookinBenny]

I thought the ginger idea sounded good, and add that to the lemoncello except i would candy the ginger first, and then maybe to smooth it out some coconut milk? Just a thought.

Edited August 6, 2006 by CookinBenny (log)

[jess mebane]

A cocktail waitress at a chi-chi joint in Houston recommended a dole-tini, which was very good pinapple-infused vodka; we're trying it now at home. Anyone else ever go Hawaiian?

[KatieLoeb]

A cocktail waitress at a chi-chi joint in Houston recommended a dole-tini, which was very good pinapple-infused vodka; we're trying it now at home.  Anyone else ever go Hawaiian?

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A lot of places do this, most famously I think is Capital Grill who calls it a Stoli-doli martini, since they (claim) to make their pineapple infused vodka with Stolichnaya. It's quite tasty.

I prefer pineapple infused cachaca myself, but the vodka is pretty good and it's very easy to make.

[Heidi the Pilgrim]

Finally - the finished limoncello from the last batch, bottled up for holiday treats. This was filtered with a fine mesh strainer lined with cheesecloth - I tried it with coffee filters but it just plain didn't work. Does everyone else's look cloudy like this when they make it? IIRC I did let the sugar syrup cool before I added it. I don't mind the way it looks, I'm used to seeing it in frosted bottles.

[rosebud]

I haven't read through the entire thread, but I make Limoncello and give it away as Christmas presents. I use Everclear and dilute 3:1 according to a recipe that appeared in the Washington Post several years ago.

I won't get into the vodka vs. Everclear debate. I want to talk about lemons, instead.

At my local Safeway very large, beautiful lemons are available for 59 cents apiece. Fortunately, I have access to lemons (and limes) at a couple of ethnic stores in my neighborhood for either 3 for $1 or 4 for $1. Guess which ones are full of dye (which is almost immediately evident once you steep the peel in the alcohol)? Yup, the expensive ones from the Safeway.

To get rid of any wax which might be present, I simply drop the lemons in boiling water for about 10 seconds or so. Gets rid of the wax, and whatever other nasty stuff is on there without changing the essential part of the lemon.

[KatieLoeb]

Heidi, your limoncello looks positively gorgeous!

Great job. I hope your friends that are fortunate enough to be on your gifting list are appreciative. Perhaps you could add a tag tied on with a ribbon that has a few serving suggestions or cocktail recipes on it? There are some delicious limoncello cocktail recipes HERE.

[Heidi the Pilgrim]

Heidi, your limoncello looks positively gorgeous! 

Great job.  I hope your friends that are fortunate enough to be on your gifting list are appreciative.  Perhaps you could add a tag tied on with a ribbon that has a few serving suggestions or cocktail recipes on it?  There are some delicious limoncello cocktail recipes HERE.

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Thank you Katie - I'm most happy about the bottles, I found them at a store called Kitchen & Company. Of course, my happiness was dashed when I tried to mail some and found that it was illegal to do so, in just about any way, so only my 'in person' friends will be enjoying it. I did make a swell little card, found a nice botanical drawing of lemons that I printed on business cards, and put a label on the back saying 'store in the freezer and enjoy very cold!' The recipes are a great idea though. I happen to like mine straight *hic*...

[Andrew Fenton]

Lovely limoncello, Heidi. And a lovely presentation!

[KatieLoeb]

Of course, my happiness was dashed when I tried to mail some and found that it was illegal to do so, in just about any way, so only my 'in person' friends will be enjoying it.

This may be true in theory, but of course that's only if you get CAUGHT! Bubblewrapped bottles in plain boxes with lots of packing peanuts have made the trip before. Don't ask me how I know this.

I happen to like mine straight *hic*... 

Yeah - me too, but sometimes it's nice to play around and find more ways to go through your supply faster. It just makes the next batch get started quicker.

[Abra]

Ok, so here's the scoop on the bay-infused and lavender-infused Meyer limoncellos. I asked people to vote - of 10 drinkers, 8 preferred the bay, and 2 preferred the lavender. Well, a couple of people have an irrational fear of lavender and wouldn't even taste it, and a couple liked the lavender but preferred the bay (me included) and a few just hated the lavender. So, I say to skip the lavender thing, unless you know it's for someone that really likes lavender as a flavor. The bay, on the other hand, in a Prosecco cocktail, with no bitters or sugar cube, was very interesting and refreshing.

I did try bitters, but even a tiny drop of Fee orange overpowered the bay flavor, and the limoncello was already sweet enough so a sugar cube would have been over the top sugarwise. I think the real lesson from this is that Meyer lemons don't make a very lemony cello, and it's probably better not to use them unless one wishes to add some other flavor, like bay leaf.

[duckduck]

I was told it's not illegal to ship. I called the US postal service one day and asked. I believe it was an 800 number and after much debate and flipping through books on their part, I was told that I could ship vodka from Oregon to Oklahoma. And I did. I never did get an answer on shipping durian though.

[Heidi the Pilgrim]

I was told it's not illegal to ship. I called the US postal service one day and asked. I believe it was an 800 number and after much debate and flipping through books on their part, I was told that I could ship vodka from Oregon to Oklahoma. And I did. I never did get an answer on shipping durian though.

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Well that's interesting - I first tried a Postal USA place, and they said it was "illegal". Then I got on UPS and it said they ship only beer and wine, and from "approved shippers". I could probably do Fedex, but it's about $30, for a bottle of homemade hooch, that's crazy. I thought the PO considered alcohol "flammable", and therefore not shipable, in fact there are signs inside the PO with pictures of what not to ship. Now this:

PO Guidelines

says it's not prohobited. What does this mean, 'N' means it's not allowed, or no restrictions? Now this says 'not mailable'

Domestic Mail Manual

I like your answer better, but it seems like it depends on who you talk to.

[tim]

Hi,

I make orangecello every year, usually with a two week infusion in 100 proof vodka.

A few years ago, I tried a two month infusion with microplaned peels (no pith) from very fresh florida navels.  That batch had a bitter background.

Does anyone know what went wrong with this orangcello?

Tim

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Katie,

Do you know the answer to this question. In about 5 weeks we will have fresh naval oranges and I want to do it right.

Has anyone tried the "Brita Trick" on Everclear?

Tim