“When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Lemonade!”

Or in my case…

Limoncello puts a smile on your face!

This was much easier to make than I expected and only took 4 days to cure! The flavor is bright and refreshing. I cut down on the recommended sugar so not too sweet. It was a perfect ending to our Easter feast. And thanks to my friend Leslie Jackson these lemons were freshly picked!

Ingredients:
10 lemons
1 (750 ml.) bottle vodka
2 cups sugar
2 cups water

Preparation:
Using a sharp pairing knife remove the skin from the lemons in long strips. Reserve the lemons for another use. I juiced them to make the Lemon Sorbet. Trim away the white pith from the lemon peels; discard the pith.

This can be done by scraping the inside of the lemon peel with the pairing knife. Place the lemon peels in a 2-quart pitcher. Pour the vodka over the peels and cover with plastic wrap. Steep the lemon peels in the vodka for at least 4 days at room temperature.

Make the simple syrup:
Stir 2 cups sugar and 2 cups water together in a large saucepan over medium heat until the sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes. Cool completely. Pour the simple syrup over the vodka mixture. Cover and let stand at room temperature overnight. Strain the limoncello through a mesh strainer. Discard the peels. Transfer the limoncello to bottles. Seal the bottles and refrigerate until cold, at least 4 hours and up to a month.

I let my lemons steep in the vodka for 5 days. After doing a little research I learned that 4 days is the magic number and although you can let it steep longer there is no significant benefit; meaning it has become as lemony as it will be after only 4 days.

The palate cleansing course I served for this year’s Easter dinner was a…

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 1/4 cups water
3 Tbsp. lemon zest
1 1/2 cups freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preparation:
In a large saucepan bring sugar and water to a boil stirring until sugar melts; about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Add the lemon zest and 1 1/2 cups lemon juice to the sugar water mixture. Cool completely in fridge for an hour or overnight. Freeze mixture in an ice cream maker for about 20 minutes or according to your manufacturers instructions. The mixture will be quite thin, but comes together nicely in the freezer.  Place in the freezer and chill for at least 4 hours.

If you don’t have an ice cream maker you can freeze this in a shallow pan in the freezer stirring every 20 minutes with a fork until crystals have formed; about 3 hours. It then becomes a granita rather than a (churned) sorbet, but just as delicious!

If you were making this as a dessert you’d want to add a bit more sugar. As a palate cleanser it was perfect!

Deb giving the Creamy Parmesan Orzo with Asparagus a mighty stir.

Dorita and Karen relaxing before dinner is served.

The main event: Lamb stuffed with spinach, feta, pine nuts, bread crumbs, and herbs.

Glasses awaiting vino.

Our angel vessel…a loving anniversary gift from my dear husband.