Limoncello

The drinking done in this house isn't limited to just beer. One of the great benefits of living in California is the abundance of fresh citrus.

I may have mentioned before that my husband is a bit of a citrus connoisseur. At last count we had 11 varieties of fruit trees in the back yard. I think he's acquired one or tow more since then.

Whenever we get a big harvest of fruit, we make limoncello (or kumquatcello, or Buddhacello, or whatevercitruswehavecello).

Today, we happen to be having a cooking marathon that involves several recipes calling for several lemons. Unfortunately, we didn't time our marathon to coincide with our own fruit ripening, so we had to buy lemons. It always hurts to have to buy something we normally get for free, and when we do we make an extra effort to squeeze every drop of usefulness out of it.

So, before my husband got cooking, I zested our six large lemons for a new batch. I also have two bottles that need to be finished. The buddhacello we have has been conditioning for about 4 months, and the kumquatcello about half that long.

Our recipe is adapted from Alton Brown's.

Phase 1:
About 2 lbs of the citrus of your choice
750 ml bottle of vodka. At least 80 proof, but 100 is better. Some people use Everclear.

Phase 2:
2/3 cup sugar
2/3 cup water

1. Drink some of the vodka. Some people buy separate jars or larger bottles for their limoncello, but we like to recycle just use the original vodka bottle. Since you're going to eventually need to add a little under a cup of simple syrup to the mix, you need to make sure there's enough room in the bottle for it. The easiest way to do this is to pour yourself a drink to enjoy while you do your zesting.

2. Zest the citrus. I use a Microplane to get a really fine zest. Some people just use a peeler.

3. Add the zest to the vodka bottle. This is easier said then done, especially if you're like us and using the thin-necked bottle for your conditioning. I find it easiest to pour the vodka out of the bottle, then put the zest into a funnel and pour the vodka back over it. The zest will flow easily with the vodka back into the bottle, and voila! You're halfway there.

4. Wait. The zest has to steep for at least 1-2 weeks, though most recipes I've seen suggest much longer. A friend of mine conditions her cellos for 6-9 months. I'm not quite that patient. We just have ours sitting on the counter in the kitchen. Any cool, darkish place will do.

5. Once you've waited long enough, make a simple syrup from the sugar and water. Some people use anywhere from 1-2 cups of sugar. Make it as sweet as you want, just use a 1:1 ratio of sugar to water. Boil the mixture until the sugar dissolves completely, then allow to cool. Pour the syrup into the bottle, shake a little to mix, then store in the freezer for at least a few hours.

6. Enjoy. Cellos keep in the freezer for basically as long as it takes to drink them which won't be long, especially in the summer time. You're going to love this stuff.