Arancello or orange liqueur is an excellent digestive to enjoy chilled at the end of a meal. A small jar is a great gift idea for friends and family, perhaps when you’re invited to dinner and don’t want to arrive empty-handed or with the usual bottle of wine. You can use it not only as a digestive at the end of a meal but also to soak pastries or cakes. To prepare this orange liqueur, use only organic and untreated oranges because we will use the peel. I also recommend trying Licorice liqueur, Vov egg cream liqueur and Homemade limoncello. Now let’s see how to prepare arancello and if you try it, let me know. Barbara
I also recommend trying:
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: Moderate
- Rest time: 37 Days
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Cooking time: 5 Minutes
- Portions: 2 bottles (750 ml each)
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Winter
Ingredients to make Arancello (orange liqueur)
- 4 oranges (untreated)
- 17 fl oz pure alcohol
- 2 1/2 cups sugar
- 3 1/8 cups water
How to make arancello
Let’s start preparing Arancello or orange liqueur. Wash the oranges very well. Using a vegetable peeler or a sharp knife, remove the peel — use only the orange part of the peel, please, because the white pith is bitter and would give an unpleasant flavor to the orange liqueur.
Pour the pure alcohol into a jar with an airtight closure and add the orange peels we just prepared.
Let the peels macerate in the alcohol for at least 7 days in a cool, dark place; if you’re not in a hurry I recommend leaving them for 2 weeks, but no more than a month. Stir the peels in the jar every 2 or 3 days.
After the maceration time has passed, you can proceed to prepare the liqueur: put the water and sugar in a pot, bring to a boil and when it reaches a boil, remove from the heat and let it cool.
Place a fine-mesh strainer over the pot and pour the macerated alcohol through it so all the liquid drains into the syrup.
Discard the orange peels. Now mix the syrup and the alcohol well until you obtain a homogeneous mixture. Pour Arancello or orange liqueur into one or more bottles according to your needs and store in a cool, dark place. The orange liqueur must rest for at least 30 days before serving.
How to store arancello
Store it in the pantry or in the freezer for up to one year.
