Limoncello

Monica J. Pileggi

Note:  I made this last night (7/15/04) and decided to revise my recipe as follows:

15 lemons, large, thick-skinned

1.5 liter bottle of grain alcohol

5 cups of sugar

4-3/4 cups of water

1 empty 1.5 liter bottle

Wash the lemons to remove any residue. Dry the lemons, the remove the zest (I use a potato peeler).  Make sure you remove any pith.  Divide the alcohol and zest into the two bottles.  Cover and store at room temperature in a cabinet.  Let sit for about 2 weeks.

After 2 weeks, combine the sugar and water in a large pot. Bring to a boil and cook until it thickens, about 5-8 minutes. Let the sugar syrup cool before adding the lemon vodka (use a strainer to discard the zest while pouring into the pot). Stir to combine, then pour the limoncello mixtue into the two bottles.  Cover and return to the cabinet for another 2 weeks.  (However, you really don't have to wait another 2 weeks if you originally stored longer than the 2 weeks). 

When ready to drink, store in the freezer.  It's best served ice-cold.