Neapolitan Style Limoncello

A Facebook link to this blog post last month intrigued me.  The post is all about making homemade limoncello, an Italian style lemon liqueur.  With the holiday party season fast approaching, I jumped at the chance to make a tasty libation for sharing.  Booze, lemons, sugar...what's not to love, right?

The limoncello itself is super easy to make.  The only thing you need to have is patience.  It takes about 30 days to steep the lemon peels, and I'd recommend heartily that you give your finished limoncello at least another week to mellow before serving.  There's a noticeable difference in flavor after a week- less hellfire and more lemony sweetness.

The magic all starts with grain alcohol- the revered and feared Everclear.  Everclear is mighty powerful stuff, and although it's diluted by half with sugar syrup, it'll still knock you on your ass if you're not careful.  I dunno if there's a connection, but I served this stuff at a party last weekend and there was very nearly a drunken brawl shortly thereafter.  Don't say I didn't warn you.

Anyhoo, on with the show.  Check the link above for the actual recipe.  It turns out I used 750mL of Everclear instead of the 1L called for, but it's so stout, I doubt I'd use a whole liter next time.

Limoncello is delicious as an aperitif or as part of a mixed drink.  Keep a bottle in the freezer, because it tastes best ice cold.  I like mine mixed with Sprite and ice.  I think it might also be good in a champagne cocktail.  Although I can't in good conscience recommend it, it's a fantastic shooter as well.

Removing lemon zest with a vegetable peeler- by far the easiest way.

Don't scrape into the bitter white pith.

Illegal in some states.

Good time to use that glass pickle jar you've been holding on to.  Let the peels soak in the booze for a good month.

Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.  I made a big ass pitcher of lemonade with the juice.  Nothing wasted!

The lemon peels have been seriously dessicated after 30 days in Everclear.

Lemon-tinged Everclear.  A most unappetizing color at this stage.

750 grams of sugar for simple syrup.  Thanks for jacking my pics up, Blogger.

One liter of water for simple syrup.

After boiling the simple syrup, remove from heat, add lemon peels, and let cool.

Mixing the two parts together.  Notice the lovely milky yellow hue.

Grolsch beer bottles work great because of the nifty flip tops, and my husband was kind enough to drink some of his beer for me so I could have them.  I filled four bottles, which are 16 oz. each.

After straining the lemon peels from the simple syrup, I tossed them with sugar and allowed them to dry.  Well, I allowed most of them to dry.  They were so delicious I ate a bunch while they were damp.

Strawberry Lemon Marmalade

The gals over at the blog Doris And Jilly Cook have a recipe for Strawberry Lemon Marmalade that a friend of mine recently made and raved about, so I thought I'd give it a shot.

I've only begun canning and preserving in the past month or so, and had never before made jam or jelly. I love strawberries and lemons, and this time of year is perfect for tasty and inexpensive berries from my local grocery store, so I thought I'd have a go.


Sterilized half-pint jars. The recipe said it makes 4-5 half pints; I wound up with six. Thankfully I prepared an extra when I saw the quantity of marmalade that was cooking.


The gorgeous fresh strawberries I used. The original recipe is for frozen sugared berries; since they're in season, I used fresh, chopped them up, and sweetened them. I used about a quart and a half of whole berries to wind up with 4 cups of chopped. It may have contributed to the excess that I wound up with. It's impossible to know, when someone says to use a quart of berries, if their berries were smaller than mine, or if they were whole or chopped up.


Thinly sliced and chopped lemons are brought to a boil in water and left in their cooking liquid overnight. Next time, I'll use my mandoline slicer to get paper-thin slices.


Chopped sweetened berries and more sugar are added to the lemons and the whole mess is cooked until syrupy. See Doris and Jilly's blog for tips on getting the right consistency for gelling if you've never made jam before.


A couple of lessons were learned from this, my first jam-making experience.

One: Boiling marmalade/jam/preserves is the culinary equivalent of freshly spewed lava from Mt. Kilauea. Cook on a back burner so as to avoid splattering yourself with this sticky stuff that's about as hot as the sun. Thankfully, I thought about this beforehand and wasn't injured. Cleanup is also markedly easier if you wipe splatters and spills immediately with a warm wet towel. After it dries, good luck. Grease up those elbows.

Two: The recipe calls for 4 medium lemons. Three of mine were more on the large side, which I think accounted for part of having six half pints instead of 4 or 5. It also made the marmalade a little more tart than I might have preferred.

Three: This was a lot easier than I thought it would be, very rewarding, and definitely worth another batch eventually.

Day Twenty-Five: Creamy Lemon Squares

Day 25 of Operation: Expand Horizons brings another dessert from Everyday Food- Creamy Lemon Squares from the June 2008 issue.

This simple yet delicious dessert comes together quickly and easily. The crust only has four ingredients: butter, salt, flour, and powdered sugar. The filling has only three: lemon juice, sweetened condensed milk, and egg yolks. After briefly baking the shortbread-like crust, whisked-together filling is poured in and the whole thing gets baked until set. Chill, cut, and dust with powdered sugar, and you have a dessert that's sure to please.

Yum!

Day Nineteen: Quick Lemon Mousse

Day nineteen of Operation: Expand Horizons brings a fast and easy dessert from Martha's minions- Quick Lemon Mousse from the May 2010 issue of Everyday Food.

This citrusy, creamy concoction is made up of no more than gelatin, sugar, lemon juice, water, and heavy cream, and is chilled briefly before being served with some berries to balance the tanginess. I would love to have used the blackberries called for in the recipe, but again, my budget dictates my ingredients, and blackberries are about $5.00 for a half pint. No thanks! I had some good (and inexpensive) strawberries, and they were an excellent substitute.

The recipe states it serves 4, but it could have easily served 6 instead, especially when you have plenty of fruit to pair with. The generous portions were a little too much, and the lemony flavor can be a little overwhelming if you eat the whole bowl. Nevertheless, this super fast and elegant dessert is a must for the repertoire of sweets.

Candied Orange Peels

When life gives you lemons, or oranges, limes, or grapefruits, save the peels and turn them into a tasty, chewy candy.

With a sharp paring knife, remove the outermost layer of the citrus peel(I used 5 large oranges), avoiding the white pith. Cut into 1/4" strips. Boil in water for about 10 minutes. Strain out with a slotted spoon and let dry on a baking rack for about 15 minutes. Rinse out the pan you boiled the peels in and add a fresh cup of water and a cup of white sugar. Bring to a boil, add the peels, and boil for another 8-10 minutes until the peels start to turn translucent. Return the peels to the baking rack and allow to dry for 1 hour. Coat liberally with more white sugar. Peels will keep unrefrigerated in a plastic bag or container for 2-3 weeks.