Preserving the Lemon, late winter 2021 - Find the Limoncello Recipe Here…

Nothing makes me happier than a bucket of lemons left at the front door picked from a friends tree. If time is of the essence simply juicing the lemons and pouring the juice into an ice tray and freezing is a quick fix for a generous harvest. Otherwise you can try a recipe or two and feel good about the simple joy of slow food and the benefits of seasonal eating.

The Lemon is a clever ingredient, zested for cakes, squeezed over seafood, made into syrups, cordials, digestives, cocktails, the peel is divine if left in custard and perfect for citron bomb lemon tarts, the essential oil can be used for cleansing, degreasing and uplifting a sombre mood. I love bowls of citrus in my kitchen, a reminder of beauty and colour and the simple things that I always gravitate back to.

Just waiting on the lemon peel to distill in the syrup, four more days…….   The taste of the Amalfi Coast is on its way!

Limoncello

The classic Italian digestive liqueur is made from the humble lemon, like the big jewelled beauties that come from the southern shores of Italy in places like Amalfi, Campania and Sicily. There is nothing like enjoying a petite glass with a small brioche on a table over looking the seaside late in the afternoon after wandering the streets and narrow alleyways of Amalfi. Possibly an extremely touristy thing to do, but certainly it was memorable. I remember two types of Limoncello I sampled that time in Amalfi, a sticky sweet liqueur and a kind of rocket fuel variety that were both distinctively lemon in flavour and as golden as a sunflower.

This particular recipe is like the later, and deserves to be enjoyed after a meal, for digestive purposes. The Italians are clever connisseurs of cuisine knowing the art to finishing a meal relies on a wonderful digestivo to complete the event, a wise tradition. Or if you are in the mood for something a little more mood altering have it at 5pm while standing at a window gazing out to the sea.

FIRST GET YOUR CLEAN JARS READY, YOU CAN STERALIZE OR POP IN THE DISHWASHER…YOU WILL NEED A LID OR TWO DEPENDING ON THE SIZE OF THE JARS

Just a note many recipes do not use the lemon juice, but I don’t want to waste it, so I like to add a cup at least, and secondly some recipes add far more sugar and more water to the mix, but honestly I want the rocket fuel variety just like I enjoyed in a petite glass while staring at the sea on an autumnal afternoon in Italy. Also don’t hesitate to double this recipe, that’s what I do!

Ingredients:

6 large Lemons (or double for small) unsprayed off the neighbours tree

1 Litre of Vodka or Pure Alcohol

1 Cup of Sugar

600ml Water

Juice of 1 large lemon or 2 small

One large glass mason jar with a lid or a few recycled jam jars…

Method:

First soak the lemons in a bowl of water for approximately 40 minutes. Dry the lemons gently and peel off the skin carefully leaving the white in tact (the pith will change the flavour of the limoncello if added in). I like to use a potato peeler to do this, that way you just get the skin and not the pith. You can also use a paring knife for cutting the strips of lemon.

USE A GOOD PEELER BUT TRY NOT GET CUT THE PITH (WHITE PART)

Add 2 cups of vodka to a large jar and the lemon peel, stir and seal with the lid. Sit for 6 -14 days, giving the jar a nice little shake once a day.

PART 2:

Create the sugar syrup by adding the sugar and water to a saucepan and gently cook up to a boil until the sugar dissolves, put aside and let cool.

Get your jars of vodka and peel, and pour into a clean jug using a sieve on top to separate the alcohol and peel. Discard the peel. Add the lemon juice, cooled sugar syrup and the remaining vodka to the jug. Stir well.

Part 3:

Pour all ingredients into a fresh bottle or two, depending on the size of the bottles.

Seal with a lid and leave to stand in dark place for another 12-20 days. Or if like me, you try some first to see if is the right kind of Limoncello. If too strong just make some more sugar syrup and stir into the mix and dilute to taste.

Part 4:

THEY SAY LET THE BOTTLES SIT FOR 3 WEEKS ONCE ALL OF THE ELEMENTS ARE COMBINED…BUT BEST TO TASTE TEST FIRST….

Enjoy…

Lemon and Ginger Tea

When you need a pick me up or something that cures a bunch of things, enjoy a slice of lemon and a small piece of ginger in boiled water and you will not look back…

Spring Pasta with Lemon Peel

A celebration of spring inspired by the book ‘The Land Where Lemons Grow: The Story of Italy and its Citrus Fruit by Helena Attlee. The Recipe was from the hills of Settignano outside of Florence, called Taglionlini all Scorzette di orancia e Simone…This is my take on the dish.

Spring Pasta with Lemon Peel

After reading the facinating book about the cultivation and the legacy of citrus in Italy I was most curious about a few of the recipes included. This is my take on Tagliolini all Scorzette di Archancia e Limone….Original Recipe by Damiano Miniera from Enoteca la Sosta del Rossellino in Settignano, Florence.

Recipe - Spring Pasta

Ingredients:

1 Orange

1 Lemon

20g Butter

1/2 Onion chopped

Splash or 2 White Wine

100ml Cream

Salt and Pepper

Handful of Fava Beans/Broad Beans freshly picked from the garden

Toasted Pine Nuts (fry for 5 minutes low heat non stick pan)

Parmigiana 20g shaved or grated (aged varieties are better)

200g Taglioline pasta or Fettuccine would be good too cooked in salty water

Method:

Boil pasta, cook to instructions usually 9-13 minutes depending on variety.

Peel whole citrus excluding the pith (white) and add to boiling water, cook for 5 minutes and drain.

Add butter to pan, once melted add onion, cook gently until translucent add white wine and cook 2 minutes, add citrus peel, cream, salt, pepper, fresh beans. Gently cook for 2 minutes take off heat.

Add pan of goodness to cooked Taglioline, toss in parmigiana and spoonful of pine nuts.

Perfecto.

Lemon Ice-Cream - the real deal

Making ice cream is not too tricky and a great way to use up excess eggs and a bottle of cream you may have getting close to a use by date. This was a little experiment as normally I associate lemon with sorbet or granita but this is so refreshing and creamy, and I didn’t bother using the ice cream machine churn, just froze it and gave it a few stirs along the way. If you would prefer use the churn for 45 minutes. This tastes great when its not completely frozen solid but creamy and starting to melt, just the way I remember it walking the streets of Rome, dripping all over me!!

Ceramica from Amalfi, love the painted ceramics of Amalfi, lemons are celebrated and revered…

Lemon Gelato

A light and joyous spoon of lemon ice cream, and the nice thing is that I didn’t even churn this just stirred midway though freezing, so creamy and full of lemony goodness….

Ingredients:

300ml full cream milk

Rind of one large Lemon, no pith/white

100g Caster Sugar

4 Egg Yolks

Juice of the large Lemon

200ml of whipping cream/thickened will do

Method:

Gently heat milk to simmer, no boil and add in the lemon peel, leave for an hour or so to marinate

Combine egg yolks and sugar until nice and creamy. Strain the milk from the lemon peel and stir into egg mix.

Create a bain-maire style boiler (put cooking bowl over a saucepan of boiling water) and gently stir ingredients with a hand whisk to thicken. It will gently thicken and leave a glaze on a spoon once you dip it in.

Pour into a clean bowl and let cool.

Once cooled add cream, beat lightly and then add the lemon juice. Beat for a minute it is done.

You can now churn in ice cream maker or add to food processor if you want to or just put in the freezer and come back every 2 hours and give a stir (do this twice) and it is all good to go. Tastes Divine, enjoy.

Freezing Lemon Juice

So simple and ready to go when you need a tablespoon or two to a recipe. I love adding a cube to a cold glass of soda water on a hot day with a piece of mint for a fresh pick me up, or perhaps a glass of gin at apertivo time…the possibilities are endless.

The Land of Lemons, Italy’s Amalfi Coastline…

Lemon Vinaigrette Recipe

A punchy vinaigrette to add to your salad or a side dish of mixed greens, you can add a little or a lot.

Ingredients:

4 tbsp of lemon juice

2 tbsp of white wine vinegar

200ml of best quality extra virgin olive oil

Method:

Add all elements into a jug and mix with a hand whisk, add a little pepper and a pinch of sea salt and voila, you are done. Add to that smashing Gorgonzola, walnut, fennel and rocket salad I mentioned earlier, see below….

Gorgonzola, Walnut, Fennel,

Rocket Salad Recipe

Ingredients:

40g Roasted Walnuts (bake in oven for five minutes on moderate heat to roast them, better if roasted)

20g Gorgonzola Cheese or a big slice if you love it cut into small 1cm pieces

Handful of Rocket/Arugula

Fennel Bulb, just cut some thin slices off the bottom of the bulb if just making this for one

Method:

Layer all ingredients onto a plate and pour a generous amount of the Lemon Vinaigrette over the salad, too easy!

You can make more if cooking for more than one by adjusting quantities of each ingredient. Enjoy!

Gorgonzola is a fine blue veined cheese that originates in Italy, it is strong and deeply flavoured, generally a little goes a long way.  Add it to dips, salads with Bosc pear, cheese platters, pasta sauces