Homemade Lemon Liqueur Recipe

Today’s post was inspired during the last holiday season while making these lemon bars which are extra lemony. These lemon bars use a lot of fresh lemon juice, and I was left with lots of squeezed lemons on the counter. Looking at all that bright, juicy yellow I thought, “what a shame to toss all of that” and then the idea hit. Taking a couple of jars, I filled them with the lemons and then poured a cup of sugar in each. Next, I filled it near to the top with vodka. And voila! Those leftover lemons became today’s homemade lemon liqueur recipe.

Homemade lemon liqueur is one of those bar staples that goes with so many things. And it is so easy to make! This is the perfect excuse to use the leftover squeezed lemons. You will get a lovely tangy and sweet lemon liqueur that is a beautiful yellow color. And while I utilized already squeezed lemons for this it isn’t necessary either. Using fresh, unsqueezed lemons is just fine as well. It is nice though to have a recipe to “reuse” juiced lemons and get the extra mile ought of them with a flavorful liqueur as the result. This method can be used with any citrus fruit.

Homemade Lemon Liqueur Recipe

2-3 lemons (or other citrus fruit)

1 1/2 cups of vodka

1 cup of sugar

1 quart-sized jar

Start by washing lemons and cutting them into large chunks. Pour sugar and vodka into jar. Next, place lemon chunks in the jar until the jar is full. You want enough lemon chunks to cause the vodka/sugar mixture to rise to 1 inch from the top of jar. Don’t go to the tippy top because you need some headspace for shaking. Put the lid on and shake well. Place the jar in a cool, dark place and shake every day for 2 weeks. After a few days the sugar will dissolve altogether. At the end of two weeks strain the lemons from the liqueur and put liqueur in a bottle. Label and store in fridge.

Isn’t it pretty?