Making Limoncello

[FoodMan]

Limoncello

The best way is to make your own. Very simple with maybe an hour of actual work and produces great results. The recipe I use is almost identical to the one I linked to above. I also use Smirnoff 100 proof Vodka.

Elie

Is there an easy way to zest all those lemons?

I use a regular vegetable peeler, just do not press hard on the lemons like you would for peeling potatoes and you should get only the yellow skin.

I bottled my latest batch yesterday (I will post a pic soon hopefully), so for next time I am planning on adding the one lime peel per Katie's instruction to see if it makes a noticeable difference.

Elie

[FoodMan]

a few days late but here it is:

Edited April 9, 2004 by FoodMan (log)

[mantee]

Katie, my batch is in the nest, how about Melograno's in 2 weeks? Holly wants to go also.

[KatieLoeb]

Katie, my batch is in the nest, how about Melograno's in 2 weeks? Holly wants to go also.

You're on! I'll see him Wednesday and confirm.

[jess mebane]

Katie, remember when this topic came up a year ago or so and you had this divine list for summer practical applications of the stuff? My fave was over ice cream........

[KatieLoeb]

Katie, remember when this topic came up a year ago or so and you had this divine list for summer practical applications of the stuff? My fave was over ice cream........

Over ice cream. Drizzled on buttery pound cake with fresh berries. In iced tea. In a cocktail glass with vermouth or Lillet blonde. Ice cold in small sippable shots. Ice cold in large poundable shots.

Really the possibilities are endless. Think of all the ways you'd love to incorporate an intense lemony flavor into anything and there you are.

[cjsadler]

Really the possibilities are endless.  Think of all the ways you'd love to incorporate an intense lemony flavor into anything and there you are.

I recently had some tiramisu made with limoncello, which really worked. I'm definitely going to give your recipe a shot, Katie. Thanks for posting it.

[jess mebane]

Katiekatiekatie! I started my jar o' zest and vodka blue label, and now am anxiously awaiting the results. So then I took the denuded lemons and made strawberry lemonade, which makes a great drink chilled with vodka....go figure.

[KatieLoeb]

Katiekatiekatie! I started my jar o' zest and vodka blue label, and now am anxiously awaiting the results. So then I took the denuded lemons and made strawberry lemonade, which makes a great drink chilled with vodka....go figure.

Yum! I LOVE Strawberry Lemonade! In fact, a caterer I used to work for always served that as a non-alcoholic beverage option in the summertime. It was delicious. And yeah - what couldn't be improved with a wee bit of vodka?

[hathor]

I've used a recipe very similar to Katie's for the past couple of years..the only thing I might add, is to try and use organic lemons. And if you use 80 proof vodka, which has the advantage of less chance for headaches.... don't put in the freezer as it will freeze. Unless you want it that way! Cin-cin!

[alacarte]

Cover the jar and let sit at room temperature for at least (10) ten days and up to (40) days in a cool dark place

Is it really OK to leave the bottle at room temp for a month or so? Won't it start to grow fungus or something?

[KatieLoeb]

Cover the jar and let sit at room temperature for at least (10) ten days and up to (40) days in a cool dark place

Is it really OK to leave the bottle at room temp for a month or so? Won't it start to grow fungus or something?

I'd be delighted to save mankind and invent the next great vaccine created from mold that can grow in 80-100 proof vodka. That could cure anything!

[cjsadler]

My friend and I did the final blending of our batch of limoncello and it is absolutely fantastic! Better than any I've ever bought, including some stuff I brought back from Italy. We're thinking of having a special dinner to 'tap' it. Orangecello is next. Thanks, Katie!

[KatieLoeb]

My friend and I did the final blending of our batch of limoncello and it is absolutely fantastic!    Better than any I've ever bought, including some stuff I brought back from Italy.  We're thinking of having a special dinner to 'tap' it.    Orangecello is next.  Thanks, Katie!

Excellent!!! I'm so pleased it came out well. I feel like I have a stake in all these batches of limoncello everyone is making. I feel responsible because I think I tipped over the first domino in the chain of Limoncello Madness on eGullet!

Might I suggest the following approach for your Limoncello's Coming Out party:

[beans]

Katie,

I've actually held off on purchasing limoncello from the liquor store (I've seen mostly Caravella Limoncello) because of all of the raves, oohs and ahhs of your recipe and efforts.

I will complete one batch this summer.

[Behemoth]

Yeah, add another rave. My freezer runneth over...but not for long.

[divina]

here is my recipe for Limoncello using whole grain ...

I use organic lemons, ( remember that the alcohol will leach out everything!!! so if they aren't organic... soak them in water for at least 20 minutes.

On the same page is the recipe for Nocino, a wlanut liquore traditionally made on June 24th.. so you have time to get ready!

My favorite recipe using limoncello is my version of Sgroppino..

I make a vanilla ice cream milk shake, thinned with milk... and a very large splash of limoncello.. served in wine goblets at the end of a meal!

In Venice, Sgroppino is a lemon ice cream ( not sorbet) thinned with prosecco and "corrected" as they say with vodka!

But try it with lemon sorbet, prosecco and vodka.. fabulous.. slushy!!

[KatieLoeb]

Katie,

I've actually held off on purchasing limoncello from the liquor store (I've seen mostly Caravella Limoncello) because of all of the raves, oohs and ahhs of your recipe and efforts. 

I will complete one batch this summer. 

Aw shucks! I can feel the love...

Divina that Prosecco, Vodka and Sorbet concoction sounds sublime! YUMMY!

I often "correct" myself with a wee bit of vodka.

[JennyJupiter]

I am making limocello as a suprise for a friend who had it several years ago in Italy and hasn't stopped talking about it yet! The only problem is I do not know how the final product is supposed to taste. Should it be very sweet, very lemony, or have a strong alochol taste with a hint of lemon?

[KatieLoeb]

I am making limocello as a suprise for a friend who had it several years ago in Italy and hasn't stopped talking about it yet! The only problem is I do not know how the final product is supposed to taste. Should it be very sweet, very lemony, or have a strong alochol taste with a hint of lemon?

Very sweet, very lemony and pretty strong is the usual balance.

[JennyJupiter]

It turned out perfectly! Very strong and very yummy, she loved it!

[KatieLoeb]

It turned out perfectly! Very strong and very yummy, she loved it!

Welcome JennyJupiter! I just noticed you're a relatively new poster. Forgive my manners for not welcoming you before.

Glad it all worked for you. It really is pretty simple, it just requires some patience. Other than that is about as easy as any recipe I could think of.

Try a shot in your iced tea. Quite refreshing on a hot summer day.

[smokestack]

Has anyone else noticed the appearance of a fine, whitish matter in the bottle of limoncello while the peels are steeping? It tends to float to the top of the bottle. Reminds me a little of the white cloudy stuff that appears when you're pickling lemons, which is bits of dissolved white pith. This has made me suspect that I was using my Microplane grater too enthusiastically, so that tiny fragments of pith made it into the mix.

As for the variety of lemon used for limoncello in Sicily, Lance Walheim of Citrus Specialties in Exeter, Calif. says he expects to pick between 1,000 and 2,000 pounds of Femminello St. Teresa lemons in February and March. The variety is quite new in California and most of the crop is already bespoken by San Francisco area restaurateurs.

I have drawn Walheims' attention to bballinger's note -- backed up by a site in Spanish, http://www.pasqualinonet.com.ar/el_limoncello.htm -- that Femminello is picked underripe for limoncello purposes. Lemons are typically picked underripe in California anyway, but Walheim had been planning to pick Femminello fully ripe because its flavor is better. However, he concedes that the oils of the peel might be better when the fruit is underripe, and he will look into this when he goes to Sicily this fall.

[Rien]

Assuming one doesn't make their own, are any available brands worth purchasing?

I see Toschi, Luxardo and Caravello most often.

Thanks,

rien

[Mrs. P]

I just started a limoncello with some fabulous summer lemons. I just noticed the tip to add the zest of one lime - I think I'll pull out the jar and add that in. Thanks for the idea to make lemonade - what a great idea!

I tried the Caravello limoncello, and thought that there was too strong a taste of grain alcohol. I have had better, but homemade. Have not tried other brands - I decided it is cheaper (though slower) to make your own!