I finally set out to make some homemade Limoncello thinking it would be a nice gift for family and friends for the holidays. I’m glad that I started a few months ago as it took me three tries before I honed the recipe to our liking.
The first batch was too sweet. Ed and I tested this out with our friends, Lisa and Lou R and Genevieve and Eric S after a lovely dinner at Anthony’s in Malvern, PA. It’s always fun to have a bit of Limoncello after some good Italian food. We agreed that at this batch was okay but the sweetness needed to be a cut a bit.
Fortunately during this same time we’d had a good conversation with Mike the bartender at the newly opened Avola Kitchen + Bar (also in Malvern, PA) and he’d shared his recipe for Limoncello with me. I used this to make batch 2. Instead of using white sugar as I’d used in batch 1, I used honey as the sweetener. But unlike batch 1, I also used the juice from the zested lemons. Elisabeth R joined Ed and me for this tasting. We agreed that it resulted in the right balance of sweetness and tartness, but honey just wasn’t the right kind of sweetner. Nor did it produce the right color – it wasn’t the bright yellow that we’re used to seeing.
So for batch 3, I combined the best of both recipes and we tested it out with my sister, Dixie J, plus Aunt Jill M and Uncle Bruce M. We agreed that this was the right level of both sweet and tart and a great bright yellow color. We also agreed that a little goes a long way!
There are just four ingredients in this Limoncello. Preparing it is easy although zesting ten lemons does require a bit of stamina. But you must make sure you have enough time let it sit – first for a week (just the lemon zest, lemon zest and vodka) and then with the addition of the sugar water for another two weeks. So start to finish is three weeks. Rushing it will not produce a favorable result. Once this process is complete it is best to serve it chilled. You can store it in the freezer for a few months, but I’m not sure it will last that long.
Some recipes call for a pure grain alcohol (proof between 151 and 190), but I found this worked fine with an 80 proof vodka (and doesn’t hit you quite as hard). I used Tito’s Vodka to ensure that I was starting with a gluten-free/wheat-free base as Tito’s is made using corn.
If you start now you’ll have some ready for sharing with family and friends for the Christmas holidays. Thank you to my family and friends who helped in the taste testing.
Pictured below is the Limoncello No. 3 during stage 1 – when there’s still zest in it. I was amazed how quickly it takes on the vibrant yellow color.
| Limoncello No. 3 | | Print |
- 10 organic lemons, zested and juiced
- 1 litre of vodka
- 3 cups white sugar
- 4 cups filtered water
- Using a microplane, zest and then juice lemons and place in a large mason jar or container. Add vodka to container and seal. Place in a dry, cool spot (not refrigerator) for one week.
- After one week, combine sugar and water in a medium pan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Let boil for 15 minutes without stirring. Let cool to room temperature.
- Strain lemon vodka mixture twice through a fine sieve. Rinse out container and return strained mixture to container. (See Notes)
- Add sugar water to strained lemon vodka mixture and shake. Store in a dry, cool spot (not refrigerator) for two weeks.
- After the additional two weeks, transfer container to the freezer and serve chilled over ice or straight up.
- It will keep in the freezer for a year.
* At stage 2: depending on the size of your container, you made need to divide the mixture into two containers after you’ve added the sugar water to the lemon vodka mixture. I recommend combining both and then dividing between two containers. Alternately, you could divide the mixture into smaller containers at this step.
I’m going to try this next weekend. I love this drink. Looks like a great recipe.
So glad to hear it! Please let me know what you think.