Seriously–when The Seekers sang “lemon tree very pretty, and the lemon flower is sweet, but the fruit of the poor lemon is impossible to eat” they were suffering a culinary deficit.

Lemons have got to be one of the most foundational of flavors and vital ingredients. The fresh, zesty acidity can lift a dish, add an extra dimension, or be the star of a culinary masterpiece.

I love lemon, although I qualify that by stating I love the Eureka or Lisbon varieties above the Meyer lemon, which I find to lack zestyness and zing.
Seasonally, lemons are at their most bountiful now.
Over the last few weeks we have made the most of the many lemons inherited or helped transform others’ excess.

One afternoon a few weeks ago, one industrious boy set to (his brother eventually joined him) and made several batches of lemon cordial, which they, typically for their age, labeled “Boys’ No.1’s”  Lemon Cordial!
Tangy refreshment!

“Boys’ No. 1’s” Lemon Cordial:
Ing:
5-6 large-ish lemons
1.5 kg white sugar
30g tartaric acid
60g citric acid
8 cups boiling water

Method:
Finely zest the rind off the lemons. Juice lemons.
Put all ingredients into a large stainless steel saucepan/bowl. Add boiling water, stirring to dissolve sugar.
Cool, then bottle and seal.
Serve with about 1/2 inch or so topped with water or mineral/soda water.

Our next major lemon venture was only a few days ago. Upon visiting daughter and s-i-l’s country home for a few days, I immediately spied an overflowing fruit bowl of (Meyer 🙁 ) lemons. Also discovered 36 uncollected chook eggs, which were duly gathered, washed and checked for freshness.

Lemons…eggs…
What else does one think of but a batch of Lemon Butter?
And being the hungry types, what about a nice lemony dessert?
Boom Boom.

Lemon Butter in the microwave: (Thank you to Aunty Hazel, one of my prime cooking influences, for this)
Ing:
8 oz white sugar
2 eggs
zest of 3 lemons
juice of 2 large lemons
4 oz fresh unsalted butter

Method:
Place sugar, butter, juice and zest in a glass microwave-proof jug.
Heat and stir until sugar is dissolved.
Beat eggs in a separate bowl.
Beat eggs into juice mixture.
Cook in bursts of a minute, stirring between cooking, until thick. Pour into sterilized jars and seal. Cool and store in fridge.
Spread on toast, scones, use in tarts, or as we did for our dessert, use in Stephanie Alexanders Lemon Roulade – pg 396 of “The Cooks Companion”.

The list of lemony delights is long, but pretty much the winner in our family is “A Good Lemon Tart”. At the restaurant where Quality Controller and I held our wedding reception, we said that Lemon Tart was mandatory as a dessert choice. The chef had the sense to agree. On our honeymoon in Paris, we were ever on the hunt for the perfect Lemon Tart. Fauchon nailed it.
Sad to say, many cafes now seem to use a lemon oil/essence instead of zest and juice and it just doesn’t get there! Sorry!

Be warned, making a good lemon tart can lead to marriage proposals.
The following recipe is based on the Stephanie Alexander Lemon Tart

“A Good Lemon Tart”:
Short crust Pastry for 24 cm loose bottomed flan tin.
Ing:
225 g plain flour
1/2 tsp salt
130g cold unsalted butter
2 tbs icing sugar
2 tbs cold water.

Method:
Place flour, sugar, diced butter and salt into bowl of food processor. Process until mixture looks like bread crumbs. Add water and pulse on and off until mixture just comes together. Turn onto floured surface and knead until smooth. Wrap and rest in fridge for 20 mins.
Line a greased flan tin with pastry then freeze for 20 mins.
Blind bake pastry 15 mins in 200°C preheated oven.
take out of oven, reduce heat to 160°C. Pour filling into shell and bake for 35 – 40 mins until just set. Cool in tin. Tart can then be served warm, but I prefer mine cold, with dollop cream.
Filling Ing:
6 eggs, lightly whisked
250g caster sugar
Zest and juice from 3 large lemons (about 250mls juice)
200ml thin cream
Method for filling:
Combine zest, juice, eggs and sugar well. Add cream and mix well. Pour into baked pastry case. Bake as above.

This has been only one segment of  the lemon bounty. There will be ‘seconds’….