We make this Limoncello every year in late winter when Sweet Lemons are in season. There is a lot of rest time, but the wait is worth it. We do not like our limoncello super sweet, but feel free to add more or less sweetener to your liking.
Limoncello
Servings: 750 ml
Ingredients
- 12 Sweet Lemons
- 750 ml Everclear
- 1 c Water
- 1 c Sugar
Instructions
- Peel lemons trying to get only the zest (yellow portion). If you get a little pith (white portion), it is ok, but should not be thick, and the less the better.
- Put the zest into a wide mouth sealable jar.
- Pour Everclear over the zest and seal the jar.
- Place the jar in the freezer and let set for at least two months. Every few days swirl the jar to stir the alcohol.
- Once the mixture is a nice deep yellow (around 2-3 months).
- Strain the alcohol to remove all lemon peels. Add back into the jar or a sealable bottle.
- Add the water and sugar to a small sauce pan over medium-high heat. Stir until all sugar is dissolved. Allow to cool completely.
- Add ¼ – ½ cup of the cooled simple syrup to the alcohol. Seal the jar and swirl to mix.
- Place jar in freezer and let set for about a week.
- Test the limoncello for sweetness. If needed add more simple syrup and repeat the rest time. Continue this process until you have a good sweetness.
Notes
- It is important to use Sweet Lemons (Limoo Shirin-Limu) as they have a sweet peel, most other lemons have a sweet flesh but bitter rind
- We use an apple peeler to remove the zest but use what works best for you
- After removing the zest, juice the lemons and use them for other recipes or freez theme, but note the juice is not as sweet so you may need to use additional sweetener
- The longer it sits in the freezer, the deeper yellow it will become, this will give it the lemon flavor
- Save the lemon peels after straining and candy them, it gives a great flavor
- When sweetening, only add a bit of simple syrup at a time – you can always add more if needed, but you can’t remove it.