Limoncello
- Ready In:
- 842hrs
- Ingredients:
- 4
- Yields:
-
2 bottles
- Serves:
- 68
ingredients
directions
- PART ONE (two weeks minimum, 2-3 months best).
- Wash and dry the lemons. Only use the ones without blemished peels or pare off any spots and the stems, ends.
- Remove the peel from the lemons with a sharp peeler or fine grater, carefully avoiding the bitter white pith. If any white pith remains on the back of a strip of peel, scrape it off. If you get any of the white part in the batch, the limoncello will be bitter and you don't want that!
- Put the peels in a glass jar and add the vodka about two inches below the top and seal tightly.
- Leave the jar to steep in a cool, dark place until the peels lose their color, at least 2 weeks. 2-3 months gives the best flavor
- Every couple of weeks swirl the peels around in the jar to mix up the oils in the alcohol.
- PART TWO (two weeks).
- Put the water and sugar in a saucepan, stir and slowly boil until it turns clear. Let the syrup cool.
- Put the cooled syrup in the jar with the lemons (you might have to divide the batch into two jars at this point, depending on the size of your jar).
- Put the jars back in the closet for at least two weeks. Longer is fine too.
- PART THREE (one week).
- Strain out the lemon peels through a coffee filter or cheesecloth and pour the limoncello into another container.
- Press down to remove all the vodka and oils that you can from the peels before tossing them in the trash.
- Stir the liquid with a clean plastic or wooden spoon.
- Put the liqueur in clean bottles, seal tightly and leave the finished bottles for at least 1 week before using.
- For best flavor and drinking it straight, store the limoncello in the freezer. It shouldn't freeze because of how much alcohol is in it and it's wonderful ice cold.
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RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
Kitchen Witch Steph
Blacksburg, VA
A picture of me and my dear friend Liz. I'm on the left.
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I live in Blacksburg, Virginia with my husband and 3 young children, and one fat cat. I'm a stay at home Mom of an 8 year old girl, 5 year old boy, and 2 year old girl. They are all stinky rotten but I am terribly attached to them. Plus, they do put up with me. I guess I'll keep them.
Dinner preparation can be challenging with my toddler hanging on my leg but I still try to make a really nice meal. I enjoy cooking so much and though I could turn to more convenience foods to help me out, I just don't like to. My food is a source of pride for me. Some of my best memories are of my Mom in the kitchen. So, let the laundry pile up and the dust accumulate because I am spending my time in the kitchen.
I live in a close knit community and have an excellent support network of other Moms. There are a lot of good cooks in the bunch so there is a lot of recipe swapping. My MOPS group just sent a cookbook to the printer to make it back by the holidays. I helped with the editing.
Blacksburg may be small but the presence of Virginia Tech ensures that we have a constant ebb and flow of folks from all over the place. Small town meets global world. I'm originally from Indiana where I was raised to love basketball but have transitioned over to Hokie football. Sometimes our town IS that football team. Certainly, I love the tailgating and I feel at home among the ever present sea of orange and maroon. I love this place.
If I am eating out in Blacksburg, I'm most likely to be seen at Gillies's for breakfast, Cabo Fish Taco for lunch, and the Cellar for dinner.
RecipeZaar is the cooking site I visit most. I can almost always find what I am looking for here. The reviews and ratings are so helpful. The folks here seldom let me down. I have accumulated quite a recipe collection from you all. Thank you!
I find myself in the natural foods section of the grocery more and more these days. I have been gradually weaning the family off of processed foods. I can't fathom becoming a vegetarian anytime soon so we buy organic beef from a local farmer. It's great stuff and we get it at a good price.
I've been cooking with whole grains and fresh produce more often lately. I am trying my hand at making my own mayo and ketchup. I went in with a friend to purchase a grain mill to mill our own grains into flour. I look forward to gaining more experience in bread making. Want to try grain soaking.
My favorite cookbooks are my old Fanny Farmer and Good Housekeeping, a 1990 edition of the NY Times cookbook, and an Amish cookbook by Marcia Adams.
I still love my sweets. I tell myself that if I make it from scratch and I use more organic and raw ingredients, that it's OK. Not exactly healthy but an improvement. I do find that many of the desserts I used to like are just too sweet for me anymore. This has put me on a quest to update or replace some of the recipes I've had for a long time.
Other interests of mine include children's literature, cardmaking, writing, afternoon naps. the art of Charles Harper & Audrey Kawasaki, craftsman houses, and tournament-style Scrabble.
Autumn is my favorite season. Few things please me more than the fall's crisp air, leaves dancing around in a cascade of colors, and my glorious friends the pumpkins. The Blue Ridge Mountains are perfect. Plenty of trails locally and in the mountains to do lots of nature walks.
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