Monday, February 13, 2006

Limoncello


Limoncello
Originally uploaded by lildebbie_77.
When my in-laws came a couple of weeks ago, they brought with them my father-in-laws latest concoction: limoncello. It seems to be the Italian equivelant of bootleg liquor (meaning that it is far more genteel - and drinkable - than moonshine. Probably illegal, but still more genteel).

So here's how Papa Bob told me he makes this liquor:

Take 10 lemons and zest them - don't get ANY white! (he was very adamant)
Put your lemon zest in the bottom of a large container with a pound or two of sugar.
Pour 1 liter pure grain alcohol over this.
Add 1 liter purified water.

close (do not seal completely) and put in the fridge. Shake it every day for a couple of weeks. Strain it, and you now have...limoncello.

I was a little nervous about drinking it. It's basically 100 proof! I could smell the sugar and the alcohol as soon as he opened the bottle. One sip convinced me that while not lethal, this drink is not for the faint of heart. Hubby liked it. Papa Bob loves it. My mother-in-law likes to pour a little bit over sliced bananas and strawberries. I've decided the best way to drink it is to mix it with vodka and make a martini out of it.

It makes a very strong martini. In fact, I don't believe I'd like to deal with the hangover that would surely come if I tried to drink more than one. But the taste is quite good. If you've ever had a lemon drop (the shot that you did in college, not the candy you get in your Easter Basket), just imagine that with a lot more punch.

3 comments:

Loribelle Hunt said...

Oh, I've heard this stuff is pretty good, but the 'pure grain alcohol' in the ingrediant list made me cringe lol. (Oh, okay, that could be the one beer too many I drank last night talking lol.) That just sounds like flavored 'shine to me lol.

Kristen Painter said...

I made a big batch for my dad for Christmas. (We're Italian.) It's good stuff. Try it drizzled over vanilla ice cream!

Anonymous said...

I make mine a little differently:
http://verbatim.blogs.com/verbatim/2004/04/limoncello_time.html
It's delish!