You are just waking from your wonderful Thanksgiving dinner. Right? You think you’ll never do that again. You are still stuffed, you might have had a bit more wine that you planned, and you never want to see another can of cranberry sauce.

That’s ok. Soon, you’ll be making turkey sandwiches and turkey soup. You’ll be reheating stuffing and mashed potatoes. You’ll be wondering how much of that green bean casserole you should add to your plate of left overs before you cover it with plastic wrap. Then, in just 3 minutes and 27 seconds your microwaved do-over of Thanksgiving dinner will be ready.

Now that you’re sitting down and enjoying a quieter dinner setting, let’s talk about that Christmas Dinner. You’re going to do something wonderful for dinner, I’m sure. But what about dessert? Or maybe a taster of something to send home with your guests. But, what, you wonder. What would be a wonderful send away?

At that moment, you hand your guest a frozen little bottle (2oz) of home made limoncello (or make it with limes). I’m talking about this today because this recipe needs 3 weeks to rest before you can serve it. Yet, the flavor is simply outstanding. It’s got a nice sweetness with a bitter lemon (or lime or lemon-lime) tang to it.

I’ll be sharing little bottles of this with my Christmas party guests in a few weeks. Yes, I started making it a while back. I hope you consider doing something fun too.

Print Recipe

Limoncello

Inspired by Crescendo's Limoncello, this dessert drink is perfect after a heavy meal.

Prep Time1 30

Steeping Time21

Total Time21 1 30

Course: Dessert, Drinks

Cuisine: American

Keyword: alcohol, dessert, lemon, lime

Servings: 30 2 oz Gifts

Calories: 211kcal

Equipment

Bottles with Corks – enough to bottle 2 liters (70 oz) of limoncello (see notes)
A microplane for zesting the lemons and limes

Ingredients

8 lemons
3 limes
1 liter vodka or grain alcohol (if you like strong drinks)
3 cups white sugar
4 cups water

Instructions

Infuse the Vodka

Zest the lemons and limes into a gallon jar. (Use the remaining parts of the lemons/limes for a wonderful lemonade.)
Add the vodka to the zest, cover, and let rest at room temperature for 1 week.

Add the Syrup

Combine sugar and water in a saucepan and heat to boiling. Do not stir. Boil for 5 minutes.
Remove syrup from stove and allow to cool to room temperature.
Add the syrup to the infused vodka, cover, and let rest at room temperature for 2 weeks. You may wish to stir the mixture every few days.

Bottle and Share

Strain the final product into bottles and seal with corks.
Store in freezer, and share with friends.

Notes

You will want to decide how you wish to share this wonderful treat. I use a larger bottle for sharing, and this recipe makes about five 375ml Nordic Bottles for a true gift. Of course, you may wish to share with more people, or use as a party gift. For this a 2oz Swing Top bottle will give you 30 or so gifts.

Did I mention, this is an alcoholic gift. So, be considerate when making your dessert. If you use 80-proof (40% alcohol) vodka, the final drink will be about 40-proof (20% alcohol). This is on par with a good port wine. It’s plenty strong and makes for a nice sipping dessert.

If you make it with EverClear Grain alcohol, you can get a bit carried away. Depending on your State you can get one or more of the following with a breakdown of the end product:

EverClear 120 will end up with 60-proof (30% alcohol) Limoncello – about the same as as many specialty shots that your favorite bartender pours
EverClear 151 will end up with 75.5-proof (37.75% alcohol) Limoncello – about the same as straight vodka – makes an amazing martini
EverClear 190 will end up with 95-proof (47.5% alcohol) Limoncello – honostly too strong to drink straight – mix this with something non-alcoholic or use as a topper for ice cream

A Dessert Gift to Pucker Over