When Life Gives You Lemons.....Make Limoncello!

  The very first kind of alcohol I tried was Limoncello- an Italian lemon liquor. I was on a trip to Italy with my mom... and I was 13. When we visited Sorrento, we had dinner at a little hole in the wall restaurant that served Limoncello between courses. They seemed surprised that I hesitated to try it. It's exactly the type of alcohol a 13-year old would like, it's smooth, sweet, fruity and it tastes more like candy than alcohol. I haven't had it for years, but I found a recipe last week when I was going through some of my mom's old magazines and I thought I'd give it a try. It's surprisingly easy, and would make a pretty gift or base for a New Year's eve cocktail! Some recipes recommend leaving the lemon peel in the vodka for up to 3 weeks, but I also found a couple recipes that only took a couple of days. Basically, the fewer lemons you use, the longer the lemon peel needs to soak in the vodka. It is best when stored in the freezer up to 3 months, and should be served very cold.

     My sister, Melissa, and I decided to make it this year as gifts. We used 80 proof vodka and the Limoncello we made froze when we stored it in the freezer (it gets diluted with a sugar syrup). However, it was delicious and thawed within a few minutes of removing it from the freezer- it never froze solid. Some recipes call for Everclear, which would solve this problem, but I don't think it was be as tasty. A higher proof vodka may be a good intermediate.

Limoncello
22 lemons (preferably organic)
1- 175 ml Smirnoff 80 proof vodka
6 cups sugar
6 cups water

-peel off the zest with a potato peeler, knife or zester. Make sure that you get a very superficial layer, as the white pith below the zest is bitter.
-add the peels to the vodka and allow to sit at room temperature for 2 days- 1 week (we waited 3 days), stirring occasionally.

The lemon peels and vodka

-after the peels been allowed to mix with the vodka for several days, make a simple syrup with the sugar and water. Start by heating the water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add the sugar until it is all dissolved.
-Remove the sugar syrup from the heat and add to the vodka and lemon solution. Allow to sit in the fridge for a day, then strain out the peels.
-funnel the finished limoncello into glass bottles and store in the freezer. Drink once well chilled.

My parents had these pretty bottles lying around, but you can find similar ones at World Market.

Sinful Lemon Crumb Muffins

    These muffins were one of my favorite treats as a kid, and they still rank at the top of my list! The recipe comes from the Pine Tree Barn Restaurant in Wooster, OH, the town I was born in. In addition to a restaurant, they sell furniture and have a large candy counter (my favorite part). They also have a large Christmas tree farm, and it's where we got our tree every year we lived there. These muffins are really more like cupcakes, but they didn't "count" as dessert, so I was allowed to eat them as part of my meal, which made them even better :-). I couldn't think of any way to improve on this recipe, although I think they'd be good with fresh raspberries or strawberries in them. Also, just to warn you, this recipe makes a ton of muffins. Unless you're baking for a big crowd, it's best to halve the recipe.

Pine Tree Barn Lemon Crumb "Muffins"

For cake:

-3 c sugar                                

-1 1/2 c sour cream

-4 1/2 c flour                           

-2 Tbs +2 tsp lemon juice

-1/2 tsp salt                             

-zest of 4 lemons

-1/2 tsp baking soda                 

-6 eggs

-1 1/2 c cold butter

For crumb topping:

-1 1/2 c cake flour                   

-1 stick melted butter

-1 1/2 c sugar

For glaze:

- 3/4 c sugar                            

-1/3 c lemon juice

-Prepare crumb topping by sifting together sugar and cake flour, add enough melted butter to make crumbs.

-For cake, sift together flour, salt and sugar. Add butter and blend with a fork or food processor until is resembles coarse crumbs.

-In another bowl, beat eggs, add sour cream, zest and lemon juice. Add to flour mixture and blend.

-Fill muffin tins 3/4 full, cover with topping.

-Bake at 350 F for 20 min. Remove and allow to cool.

-Prepare glaze by mixing lemon juice and sugar. Poke 6-8 holes in the top of each muffin, spoon glaze over the top.

-Makes 2-3 dozen muffins.

If you're in the area and would like to try these muffins, visit the Pine Tree Barn Granary Restaurant