Limoncello di Sorrento

This light and aromatic recipe hails from a woman in Sorrento who shared how to make Limoncello in 5 days (as opposed to the original recipe’s 40 days)! Limoncello is an excellent digestive and should be served very cold. In Italy it is a delicious finish to lunch or dinner. Salute!!

WORDS AND PHOTOGRAPHY
BY LINDA STERCKEL

Makes about 1 ¼ quarts

• 8 Large organic lemons, washed and dried
• 2 Cups of grain 95 percent alcohol (Everclear)
• 3 Cups of water
• 3 Cups of granulated sugar or more, to taste

Using a vegetable peeler, peel the yellow zest in long strips. Make sure there is no white pith or as little as possible as this makes the limoncello very bitter.

Put the peels and alcohol in a sealable glass jar and set aside for at least 5 days in a cool, dark place. Then strain out the peel.

Bring 3 cups of water to a boil in a saucepan and stir in 3 cups of sugar. Simmer until the sugar is dissolved, then remove from heat and let cool. Stir the cooled syrup into the alcohol mixture.