Friday, December 11, 2009

if you have lemons.....


LIMONCELLO

Many years ago, when I was in Sorrento along the Amalfi Coast, a friend invited me to meet Concetta. "She's the best cook in town." she said, “She’s eighty years old and has lived in this little pocket of paradise all her life.” My friend told me that Concetta's only trip away from Sorrento was to Naples ONCE! "That was enough!" Concetta said.

The day we visited Concetta, it was a very hot, humid Amalfi-kind of summer day, when only Mediterranean breezes bring relief. We sat on her terrace and she brought out miniature martini glasses, all frosty and beaded with cold. From the freezer, she also brought a bottle of lemon yellow liqueur and poured it into our ice cold glasses. One sip of limoncello led to another. I’ll never forget that afternoon.

Limoncello has gotten to be a popular digestif made along the Amalfi Coast and on the islands of Ischia and Capri. It is pronounced lee-moan-chello, the last part like the musical instrument. When I first heard the word, I thought Concetta was saying lemon jello? That’s how much I knew about it that many years ago.

Getting the recipe from her was another story. When I asked Concetta, you would have thought I was asking for her first-born child. But she liked me so I knew I had a chance. Much later in the afternoon, Concetta came from the kitchen with a small piece of white paper. She held tight to the recipe as she handed it to me and I tugged from the other side. All the time we were smiling, and thank God, I finally won the tug o’ war. I was holding the recipe!

Here I am in Los Angeles this week, a long way from the Amalfi Coast, cooking for my close friend, Charlotte, as she recovers from surgery. I noticed that her lemon trees were absolutely loaded with thick-skinned lemons. I thought, “Great, Christmas gifts! Limoncello for everyone!”

The first step is to gather a bunch of lemons. OK, I’ve done that. Now what? Let me get out my recipe….

LIMONCELLO

Limoncello can be used as an aperitif mixed with sparkling wine, Champagne or mineral water, garnished with a twist of lemon peel. Or use it to flavor homemade lemon granita, sorbet or ice cream. During the summer, I like to toss limoncello with blueberries and peaches for shortcake. Or just sip it ice cold from the freezer as a digestif.

30 thick skinned lemons, Eureka, Lisbon or Citron
2 bottles 100 proof Everclear or vodka (750 ml per bottle)
4 cups sugar
4 cups water

Peel the lemons with a vegetable peeler. Remove all white pith from the back of the peel and discard. Place the lemon peel in a large jar with one bottle Everclear. Stir. Cover and place in a dark place for 7 days.

After7 days, bring the sugar and water to a boil and boil for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool the mixture cool 10 minutes. Add the sugar syrup and the remaining 1 bottle Everclear to the jar containing the lemon peel and Everclear. Mix well, cover and place in a dark place for 7 days.

After 7 days, strain and store it one bottle at a time in freezer until ready to use.

Makes approximately 3 quarts

6 comments:

The Italian Dish said...

I bookmarked this post! I've seen lots of recipes for Limoncello, but this one is right from the source!

Lisa | Authentic Suburban Gourmet said...

Love Limoncello! Made is several years ago for Holiday gifts. I bet yours is divine!

fred said...

Nice how to recipe from the birthplace of Limoncello. Since you are using only the outer skin of the lemon, look for organic lemons that have not been treated with nasty stuff. Look for lemon varieties that have a thick skin and are high in essential oils. Also try an alternative sweetener such as agave instead of refined sugar for a warmer palate feel. The maceration time will vary and so will the final flavor and color profile if you use high proof grain alcohol (190 proof) or vodka (80 proof). They are not the same. You MUST adjust the amount of simple syrup based on these different proofs or you will get very different final proofs. Everclear in CA is 151 proof 75% alc and vodka 80 proof 40%alc. A higher proof alcohol will extract out the oils and color faster. The final proof is more important than the starting proof of your spirits. More info at www.hellosonoma.com Salute! This makes a great Christmas host gift.

John Johnson said...

I'm glad I checked Joanne Weir's actual website for the recipe. I have seen it in newspapers but it had less lemons and more time in the cupboards. On our third batch and it tatses great!

margo pfeiff said...

Joanne, I have your recipe for Limoncello from Cooking Magazine, I believe, from 1997 and you use 15 lemons peeled in that one, steeped for 40 days before adding the sugar syrup and another bottle of vodka and stashing it another 40 days. How come this one is a 2 week affair. I see you have 30 lemons on the list but they wouldn't even be covered for the first week. Your limoncello is amazing. Have been making it for 15 years and was asked to post it. Margo

Joanne Weir said...

Margo,
Thanks for writing and happy you like my limoncello! I'm not sure I understand your question though but happy to help in any way I can.
Joanne