italian dessert recipes

Limoncello Recipe

"By the way, what is limoncello?"




limoncello recipe

This limoncello recipe is basically a lemon cordial or a lemon liqueur. And we as Italians we call this limoncello. It's one of our popular Italian drinks. Ok, so now you're thinking which is it - a cordial or a liqueur or limoncello?

Let's get a common ground here. It's all in the *word*. More than 30% of my readers are OUTSIDE of the US. So to clarify:

  • In the United States we use the word cordial.


  • In Eurpore the word used is liqueur.


  • Italians call this limoncello.


    • Make sense? So if you are looking for a lemon cordial or lemon liqueur recipe you have come to the right place!

    This limoncello recipe is easy to make. Only 3 ingredients - and all recipes are basically the same. I had my brother-in-law email me his copy of the recipe since he made these for us this past New Year's Eve.


    What Do I Need To Make Limoncello?



  • lemons


  • vodka


  • a week of waiting


    • That's IT! NOTHING ELSE - Super duper easy, right?


    Well kinda. The ingredients are the easy part. Waiting for it to be ready is the tougher part.



    Limoncello Recipe

    YIELD: Probably more than you can drink in a day!



    Ingredients

     * 6 lemons

    * 1 bottle(s) (750-ml) 100-proof vodka

    * 1 3/4 cup(s) sugar

    Procedure

     * Remove peel from lemons With vegetable peeler.

    * Refrigerate peeled lemons for juice. Or see my italian dessert recipes listed below that use fresh lemon juice!

    * Pour vodka into 8-cup measuring cup or large glass bowl and add lemon peels.

    * Cover with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature for 1 week.

    * After 1 week, line sieve with paper towel and place over another large bowl.

    * Pour vodka mixture through sieve; throw away the lemon peels. Or do it like my brother-in-law - pick out the rinds with a fork.

    * Mix sugar with 3 1/4 cups water and put in a saucepan.

    * Boil 2 minutes stirring constantly.

    * Remove and cool completely.

    * Add cool syrup to vodka mixture.



    .


    How do I store limoncello?

    Pour into bottles with tight-fitting stoppers or lids. You don't NEED to refrigerate cordials. But they are best served very cold. My bro-in-law keeps his batch in the freezer where it can keep indefinitely. Or until I come over to visit again!


    Italian Dessert Recipes to use that extra lemon juice



    Can I use Everclear?

    Well, some would argue that vodka is vodka. This recipe gets it's flavor from the lemon peel. Just make sure you get 100 proof.


    Is this limoncello recipe the same as a lemon cordial?

    Yup! Identical thing. It may be called a liqueur too. In Italy limoncello is made from the lemons off of the Aldafi coast - and it is commonly called "limoncello".


    Back to the top of the limoncello recipe.

    Italian Drinks








    Check out my homepage - Italian Dessert Recipes


    lisa gianotti I love sugar and I eat dessert EVERYDAY! Ok, not MASSIVE amounts. But I do have to finish off the evening meal with a little sweet something.

    When I was a kid my health conscience mother would ration my Halloween candy. Her mantra was, "white sugar will kill you". But my Italian grandma always told me, "Everybody needs a little bit of sugar." :-) So, to get my October Halloween sugar fix I will make the traditional Italian cookie recipe, Venetian Bones of the Dead. Italians make these for the Day of the Dead on November 2nd. So - hey, our holiday in America - Halloween is the closest.

    So - while the neighborhood is slamming down a bunch of gross mass produced candy on October 31st, I'll have a real goodie. Oh yeah, I'll have to post it too! (Eventually!) You know how it is. Work. Kids. Clean. Cook.



    I'll see if Bones Of The Dead is in my grandma's first recipe file she started when she married in 1932. Most of the recipes on my site came from her influence. If they aren't in her file - then I got them from her friends. And the remainder I experimented with adapting her style.

    I hope she looks down and smiles this Halloween.

    Lisa


    Would you like to share this page? You know how to do it! Thanks for sharing the sugar love!




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