Homemade Limoncello is a recipe very easy to prepare, a must for any Italian festivity! Even if, the traditional method needs a long time for the infusion, scientifically the taste of this delicious Italian after-dinner spirit made with lemons will be perfect in just three days!
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LIMONCELLO RECIPE AND HISTORY
Limoncello is a very popular Italian after-dinner spirit made with lemon peels. The first official recipe of Limoncello originates in the early years of the XX Century. Maria Antonia Canale, the owner of the boarding house “Mariantonia” in Capri, use to serve Limoncello prepared following her grandmother recipe. Her son, Massimo Canale, had registered the Limoncello trademark in 1988.
THE LEGEND BEYOND THE HISTORY
If the history of Limoncello does not go back very far, the legend of this sweet spirit is very ancient. It is said that the recipe of Limoncello was a creation of the Sirens. The father of the gods, Zeus stole and revealed it to a sailor. Starting from this legend, the Italian fishermen use to drink a glass of Limoncello in the winter mornings before going to work.
Another legend says that were the Carthusian monks which shoo the sirens finding the recipe of Limoncello.
TRADITIONAL HOMEMADE LIMONCELLO METHOD AND SERVING
The authentic Limoncello is made exclusively with lemon produced in Sorrento or Amalfi. The traditional infusion needs 3 weeks, but scientifically 3 days are enough. Initially, the Limoncello was served at room temperature, but in the recent years is tasted cold and neat.
HOMEMADE LIMONCELLO RECIPE
- 35 g organic lemon peels
- 3.40 fl. oz (100 ml) alcohol 95%
- 4 fl. oz. (120 ml) water
- 6 tbsp (85 g) sugar
- LEMON INFUSE
Choose only organic lemons not chemical treated. First of all. Peel the yellow part of the skin of the lemons and cut away any white part. Now, pour the lemon peel into a jar along with the alcohol. Close the jar and store in a dark place 3 days. Stir the peel once a day. - HOMEMADE LIMONCELLO
The third day, pour the water in a pot along with the sugar and place over the minimum flame. Heat the water stirring until the sugar will be totally melted. Do not exceed the temperature; the sugar solution has not to caramelize. Eventually, sift the lemon infuse and combine the alcohol with the sugar solution at room temperature. The Limoncello must become bright yellow, not transparent. Serve Limoncello neat, cold or at room temperature. - LIMONCELLO AVB
The traditional Limoncello requires an ABV between 30% and 35%. Here a tab to modify the amount of water to obtain the preferred Alcohol By Volume. Please, consider these data a general idea: making homemade alcoholic infuses with home utensils made impossible to obtain an alcoholic content accurate to the decimals.
Last but not least: DRINK RESPONSIBLY! 🙂 
Sandra says
01/14/2017 at 2:07 pmWhat are you using for alcohol ? I have see recipes with Everclear and some with vodka.
Filippo Trapella says
01/14/2017 at 8:05 pmHi Sandra,
Here in US I prepare Limoncello with Everclear 95%. In Italy, my choice is Buongusto 95%. Many persons prefer to make Limoncello with Vodka; the taste is decent, but it is less alcoholic compared with the traditional recipe.
Laura says
03/12/2018 at 8:44 amI use 151% Everclear…..
I have never tried a 3 day recipe. I do mine over 30 days. So good
Kathy says
07/21/2018 at 11:48 amCan you share your recipe?
Filippo Trapella says
07/21/2018 at 12:30 pmHi Kathy,
the recipe is at the end of this post
Happy cooking 🙂
F.
jia says
01/17/2017 at 11:57 pmEnjoyed much
Filippo Trapella says
01/18/2017 at 12:03 amI’m glad that you like it 🙂
Kimberly Loggins says
05/11/2017 at 3:30 pmPlease send me the recipe! Sounds wonderful! Thank you so much!
Filippo Trapella says
05/12/2017 at 5:22 pmThank you Kimberly!
The recipe is at the end of this post 🙂
Val Di Girolami says
06/26/2017 at 7:06 amso you only use the skin of the lemon, what do you do with the lemon once it is peeled?
Filippo Trapella says
06/26/2017 at 1:17 pmHi Val,I love to use them for a homemade lemonade.
Paula F says
07/17/2017 at 11:11 amDo you have a recipe for salad dressing using this limoncello?
Filippo Trapella says
07/17/2017 at 1:58 pmHi Paula,
I never thought of using Limoncello as salad dressing!
Maybe you can try to pour a few drops into a vinaigrette along with oil salt and pepper and taste how it goes 🙂
Sue Kremer says
07/17/2017 at 1:07 pmSo, when you say ‘sift the lemon infuse’, am I actually using a sifter to do this? Please advise and thank you so much.
Filippo Trapella says
07/17/2017 at 1:59 pmHello Sue,
That’s right! 🙂
Pina trimarchi says
08/04/2017 at 2:01 amHi, love the recipe for 3 days sounds great. Does anyone out there have a recipe for alcohol . It’s not easy to buy here in Adelaide Australia
Thanks
Deborah says
08/29/2017 at 5:43 pmThank you! We just returned from Italy where limoncello is served after nearly every dinner.
Filippo Trapella says
08/30/2017 at 2:37 amtrue story! 🙂
Bedelia says
08/30/2017 at 1:15 pmSounds delicious. Do you strain the lemon peel?
Filippo Trapella says
08/30/2017 at 7:21 pmHi Bedelia,
yep, sift the alcoholic infusion and discard the peels, then proceed as I wrote.
Happy cooking
michelle says
09/23/2017 at 12:35 amin the recipe you say not to exceed the temprature. what do you mean by that?
Filippo Trapella says
09/23/2017 at 1:21 amHi Michelle,
You want the solution not caramelized: just stop cooking when you see the sugar totaly melted, but the solution still trasparent without any trace of yellow.
Let me know if you have some more question 🙂
Donna says
10/04/2017 at 5:57 pmCan you do the same with lime?
Filippo Trapella says
10/04/2017 at 11:50 pmHi Donna,
I can not say: never tried with them 🙂
Dave says
11/27/2017 at 10:57 amI’ve made it with lemons, limes, oranges, tangelos, and kumquats before. All good! The initial recipe would be identical except for the change of citrus used, then experiment based on that outcome. Some citrus works better than others because of differing amounts of oils in the peel.
Rawnie says
10/13/2017 at 10:51 pmWhat would happen if you left the lemon peels in the bottle? They look pretty in the bottle.
Filippo Trapella says
10/15/2017 at 8:09 amHiRawnie,
yes, you can leave them in the bottle 🙂
Sarah says
10/20/2017 at 6:13 pm(1) You can make Lemon Chicken piccata with some of those bald Lemons . (2) You could also slice the Lemons, put several in each block of an icecube tray, cover with water, then freeze. Use in Lemonade or iced tea. (3 ) juice the Lemons and freeze the juice in blocks in an ice cube trays… , put frozen lemon juice cubes into a zip lock bag; keep frozen until ready to use in recipes :…… use later in Lemonaide or lemon piccata, or lemon icebox pue, or lemon sugar cookie recipes; etc. (4) compost all left overs.
Filippo Trapella says
10/20/2017 at 8:19 pmGood job Sarah!
Joe campisi says
11/20/2017 at 7:44 pmWhat is the final.proof of the finish product. I think the final product should be about 72 proof
Your receipe, with just that amount of water would, IMHO make the drink too strong
Filippo Trapella says
11/21/2017 at 11:45 amHi Joe, thanks for your comment.
My estimate is 70 proof (35% ABV). Is it possible you didn’t consider the amount of water extracted from the lemon peels?
This recipe reflects my personal taste, and according to the traditional recipe: Limoncello requires an ABV between 30% and 35%.
For those who want a lighter version, I added a tab with the different amounts of water in order to obtain the preferred alcohol content; Plus, I specified the exact grams of lemon peels to use in the Ingredient section.
Thanks again 🙂
Filippo
Briana Decker says
12/01/2017 at 12:39 pmIts suppost to be strong
Billy says
12/08/2017 at 5:25 pmThis looks so good! I love limoncello, I haven’t had it in ages. Can’t wait to finally make some more again at home! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
Filippo Trapella says
12/08/2017 at 5:30 pmThank you Billy 🙂
Joanne says
12/20/2017 at 4:28 amLooking forward to trying this !
Thanks for posting!
Filippo Trapella says
12/20/2017 at 8:05 amLet me know if you liked it! In these days I’m making mine for Christmas eve 🙂
Nann says
02/08/2018 at 7:20 pm2018-2 8 thurs. PM
What is Everclear?
At an Italian restaurant in the North End of Boston’s Little Italy area, called, actually, “Lemoncello”, I asked the waitress what alcohol is used in their Lemonvmcelli. ( it really was fabulous!. She said, NOT vodka, but rather rye whisky.
When I looked for it in a liquor store, It is dark in color. Is this ok to use. It says 95 proof.
Thx
nannhoradam@hotmail.com
Filippo Trapella says
02/09/2018 at 12:30 amHi Nann, thanks for your story!
Everclear is a brand of purified alcohol.
Happy cooking!
LK Parsons says
03/30/2018 at 11:33 pmJust finished a store bought Pallini Limoncello…time to make my own! Thank you for sharing this recipe, been brew for 24 years & wine for about 20 years….time to broaden my horizon and try your Lemoncello recipe….my niece and I toured Italy last year and enjoyed the many different Lemoncellos served throughout the country side we visited! Will post again with how it all turns out!
Filippo Trapella says
03/31/2018 at 8:42 pmHi LK,
I’m honored you choose my recipe among many of! I Hope you’ll like it 🙂
One thing: consider that Pallini Limoncello is particularly low in alcohol, so if you want to create a similar taste, you want to reduce the alcohol of my recipe.
Happy cooking
F.
Debra Spradlin says
04/24/2018 at 6:01 pmI’ve never tried this …I’m going to make some!!! I love anything Lemon and this sounds wonderful ♥️
Filippo Trapella says
04/24/2018 at 7:39 pmCool Debra,
Let me know 🙂
Kay says
07/04/2018 at 5:06 pmCould you squeeze lemon into it to make it extra lemony? And also by chance do you have a recipe for crystallized lemon rinds.
Filippo Trapella says
07/04/2018 at 5:31 pmHi kay, squeezed lemon juice will modify the Limoncello taste, so I will not recommend it. About crystallized lemons, I’m sorry but I never tried to make it yet.
Happy cooking 🙂
F.
Kristen says
07/09/2018 at 10:48 pmHi I was just wondering about how many lemons you used to obtain 35g worth of peels. Thanks!
Filippo Trapella says
07/10/2018 at 7:10 amHi Kristen, It depends on the size of the lemons: approximately 4 to 6.
Happy cooking 🙂
F.
Kim says
07/21/2018 at 12:07 amI was wondering about using the juice from the lemons as part of the liquid to make the sugar syrup. Would there be a problem doing that? Seems like it would make it more lemony without changing the alcohol content.
Filippo Trapella says
07/21/2018 at 8:49 amHi Kim thanks for your comment 🙂
I wouldn’t recommend it: the acidity of the lemon juice will ruin the essential oil of the lemon peels.
Happy cooking!
F.
Bonnie Cooper says
10/16/2018 at 1:37 amWhat would happen if you peeled the lemons then smashed the sugar into the peels, making the squashed peel release all the oil from the skin, THEN add the Vodka and let stand 3 days and after straining the peels out add the water?
Filippo Trapella says
10/16/2018 at 11:37 amHi Bonnie,
Honestly, I never tried to make Limoncello in this way, but I can assure that alcohol extract all flavors from the peels without any smashing and sugar.
Consier also that fermenting sugar into alcohol could improve the alcoholic grade.
Happy cooking 🙂
F.
Noel Baptiste, Hampshire, UK says
01/21/2019 at 11:41 amI’m going to make my limoncello with gin which has a little more flavour than vodka owing to the botanicals used in making it. When it is ready for drinking I will compare it with the normal limoncello made with vodka and let you know about the resulting flavour.
A presto !
Noel
Heather says
07/02/2019 at 9:39 amNoel – how was it?
Gary Francis says
07/14/2019 at 5:56 pmHave been looking for a good recipe and was sent a link to this. Looks excellent. Many thanks for the share!!
Filippo Trapella says
07/15/2019 at 9:52 pmThank you Gary!
Happy cooking 🙂
F.