Homemade Arancello
This is the summer of cello-ing, that’s for sure! Trying things a little differently this go around — the end result is super boozy, super sweet, and perfect for an after dinner digestif.
Ingredients:
4 large navel oranges (washed & dried!)
3 cups grain alcohol
1 cup sugar (to be added later)
1 cup water (to be added later)
Directions:
Carefully peel the 4 oranges with a y-peeler. Be mindful not to include too much of the pith (the white part), as it can result in bitterness.
Add the rinds of all 4 oranges to a clean, airtight glass jar. Juice 2 of the oranges and add the juice along with the 3 cups of grain alcohol as well.
Allow to sit in a cool, dry place for at least thirty days.
After the arancello has sat for thirty days, Begin to make a simple syrup by combining 1 cup of water and 1 cup of sugar into a medium sauce pan and bring to a simmer. Once sugar is dissolved, remove from heat and let the syrup cools completely (about 30 minutes to an hour).
While the syrup cools, strain the contents through a fine mesh sieve and a layer of cheesecloth. Discard of the orange rinds. Filter it a second time through the fine mesh sieve and a damp coffee filter.
Add 1 cup of the room-temperature syrup into the arancello and stir to combine.
Let the arancello sit for an additional week with the added syrup.
A week later, repeat the filtering process (once through cheesecloth, a second time through a damp coffee filter).
Pour filtered arancello into a clean glass jar and store in the freezer. Serve extremely chilled.