Lemons!

Have you ever seen a lemon flower? When rambling down the cliffs of an Italian village I once had a lemon fall from the rocks outcropping above and roll to rest at my feet. It was sweet and beautiful and the smell was amazing. It grew from a scraggly tree forcing it's sparse foliage out from the rock. I believe that the lemon tree may have endured the harsh environment all of it's little life for the joy of being washed by the Mediterranean mist . And surely it's fruit spoke of that joy.

So today let's celebrate the sunny sweetness that is the lemon. As I sit surrounded by a snowy January I can think of nothing better than to make up a quart of lemonade and spike it with some lemoncella. Maybe even crank up the heat and chance the bill being high.

Lemons and the recipes that they grace:

Lemon Bars ( the perfect mid-winter snack. A lemon bar brings with it a memory of the bright heat of summer fun, but carries the weight and texture of a December snowstorm.)

2 sticks (8 ounces) butter
2 cups flour
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
4 beaten eggs
2 cups sugar
4 tablespoons flour
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon peel
sifted confectioners' sugar
Heat oven to 325°. Blend butter, 2 cups flour and 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar. Pat into ungreased 13x9x2-inch pan. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes. For filling, blend together eggs, sugar, 4 tablespoons flour, lemon juice, and lemon peel.
Pour over first layer. Return to oven and bake at 325° for 20 minutes. Loosen around edges, cut into bars and sift confectioners' sugar over the top while warm.



Lemonade (my own concoction goes something like this... it's not perfect but I wing it every time)

Equal parts
Water
Raw Sugar
Freshly squeezed lemon juice (I retain the lemons to toss into the pitcher for extra lemon-goodness)

Bring to a simmer in a saucepan the water and raw sugar. Simmer until sugar is dissolved completely. Raw sugar will leave the syrup lightly off-color, a brown tint. This is just the caramelly/ molassesy goodness of using a raw sugar! Pour the simple syrup into a jar and refrigerate until cool. Pour chilled syrup and lemon juice into a large pitcher and add chilled water to taste. I usually add about equal the amount of water as the concoction... doubling the amount of liquid in the pitcher. Throw in your squished lemons and serve her up on ice! Yum. The flavor grows as it sits.