| This liqueur makes me nostalgic
- conjuring up visions of my father preparing
his own homemade limoncello, and, in the process,
turning the kitchen upside down with lemon wedges
and pots of alcohol and sugar everywhere. Most
of all, I remember him proudly presenting his
friends with his treasured creation in bottles
hand-painted by my sister - and the endless pouring
and laughter that followed.
Limoncello is a liqueur
made from fermented lemons. Refreshing and light,
it is usually enjoyed at the end of a meal: it
is an incomparable digestive, and with tonic water
it is a sweet, tasty refreshment. It's also great
with champagne or mixed with juice as a cocktail.
It even does well simply drizzled on ice cream,
fruit salads (my father's favorite), or fresh
strawberries.
No matter how you have
it, limoncello should always be enjoyed cold.
Originally a regional product of Southern Italy,
where the best lemons were and are still grown,
limoncello is now a national drink and can be
found in stores and restaurants all over Italy.
Restaurants often make their own version of it,
and offer it to their favorite customers at the
end of a meal. In fact, you don't need a professional
distillery to make limoncello: it's very easy
to prepare at home, requiring only a few ingredients
and a bit of time.
The best limoncello
comes from the island of Capri and the Amalfi
coast. In Capri, lemons are cultivated biologically
without chemical manures or other products, which
makes them perfect for an old-fashioned natural
recipe like limoncello. Amalfi lemons are unique.
They have a strong scent, a juicy-sweet pulp,
and very few seeds. The Amalfi coastline's terraced
groves have the perfect soil for growing the finest
quality lemons, which have a clean, fulsome taste
that could never be called sour. Amalfi lemons
emanate a harmony of aroma and taste, delighting
the palate with their freshness and zest. These
lemons have even come to be known as "bread,"
because they can easily be enjoyed in slices for
a snack or dessert, with or without a spoonful
of sugar. You can easily distinguish them from
other lemons in markets because they are the only
lemons picked with the stems on.
Legend has it that
the origins of this beverage lay in the well-known
homemade "rosoli" drinks (liqueurs made
from fermented spices, aromatic plants, and fruits),
which were developed in convents. By the beginning
of the 17th century, the nuns of the Santa Rosa
convent in Conca dei Marini were preparing a famous
lemon pastry dish ("sfogliatella Santa Rosa")
whose authentic taste came from a lemon liqueur.
Following the time-tested success of limoncello,
other citrus liqueurs, like delicate Mandarinello
(from mandarins) and tangy Arancello (from oranges),
are becoming popular digestives. Another alternative
to the original limoncello recipe is Cream of
Limoncello, which is made with ultra pasteurized
milk instead of water. The outcome is a cream
liqueur that is sweeter, thicker, and paler than
the original.
Italians' love for
limoncello has spread far beyond the confines
of Italy. Here in New York, most Italian restaurants
serve imported limoncello to their Italian clientele,
both as an after dinner treat and as a palate
cleanser. Limoncello is also available at gourmet
specialty stores like Balducci's and Dean and
Deluca. If you can't find it in stores near you,
you can always make your own and have a taste
of summer.
--- Elisabetta Bucci
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