Luscious Lemonade (with magic ingredients)

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There are many recipes that claim to be the ‘best ever lemonade’ or the ‘perfect  lemonade’. I don’t make those claims for mine. It does, however, contain two magic ingredients that get my oven cleaned...

How?

Well, I take my inspiration from the bit in Tom Sawyer where Tom gets the neighbourhood kids to happily whitewash Aunt Polly’s fence using a little reverse psychology. Ok, it’s more bribery than reverse psychology in this case but hey…

“Sigh,” I say to anyone within earshot...

“What’s up, Hester?”they say

“Well,” I say, “I was thinking of making a jug of my special lemonade... you know ... the one that tastes like summer…  the one with the magic ingredients… sigh”

“Yes! Yes! Great idea!” they say.

“... but unfortunately, I won’t have time... because the oven really needs cleaning.”

“Oh,” they say.  “I’ll clean the oven, Hester; and you make the lemonade!”

“Really, you don’t have to...” I say, handing them the spray, the gauntlets, the sponge, the bucket, the protective goggles ...

Ok, it's time for me to get on with the lemonade to supply the thirsty worker(s). Salt and star anise are the magic ingredients. You won't taste them but they round out the flavour.

*BEFORE STARTING: How many lemons you use will depend on how juicy they are. I used 6 lemons for this batch. To get 25g of lemon zest for the recipe, I chose two with the most blemish-free skin, scrubbed them in hot water to remove any wax, then used a potato peeler to remove the yellow part of the zest, and further trimmed the strips of peel with a sharp knife to carefully remove any bitter white skin clinging to it. It is much easier to remove the zest BEFORE you squeeze out the juice.

It's easier to remove the zest BEFORE you squeeze out the juice

To make about 500ml of lemonade cordial (2-3 litres, diluted), you will need...

25g lemon zest (prepared weight) yellow part only*

250g caster sugar

250mls freshly squeezed lemon juice, strained to remove any pips or pulp

250mls water

¼ teaspoon fine table salt

1 point of a whole star anise



Take a moment to enjoy the gorgeous aromas

 Method

Place the prepared lemon zest and the sugar in a food processor and blitz until the zest is finely chopped.

Place this mixture in a medium saucepan with the rest of the ingredients and heat gently until the sugar has dissolved.

Cover and leave to cool. Strain to remove the piece of star anise and any bits of zest and transfer to a sterilised bottle or jar. Sealed, it stores in the fridge for up to a month.

Serve over ice, diluted with still or sparkling water to taste. Cheers!

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Lemon, Rosemary and Almond Curd - Here comes the sun!

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There’s nothing like a wet Sunday is there? It is such a contradiction in terms. Hey weather, pin back your ears. Sunday … SUN Day … geddit? Nope, obviously not listening.

Well, I can’t go for my walk, I’ve finished my book; there’s nothing to my liking on the telly. A wet Sunday is a day for pottering; for tidying; for doing things that have been put on the long finger; for remembering things I’ve promised to do but never quite gotten around to doing. I’ve just remembered I promised my sister-in-law my lemon curd recipe – eeek more than two years ago! Now would be a good time to cough up the goods.

Lemon curd is not difficult - it just needs about half an hour of your time and patience to magic a few simple ingredients into a puddle of liquid sunshine that you can turn into all sorts of deliciousness once it has cooled and set. 

Ok, you've captured a jar or two of sunshine. So now what? Well, I love it spooned into Greek yoghurt for breakfast; spread on toast; swirled through whipped cream and used to fill a meringue case, then topped with strawberries or blueberries or both, and applied to mouth. Swap it for jam... particularly in a Bakewell Tart – lemon and almond are best buddies. Use it to fill a sponge or to top a cheesecake. Make it now and you'll have it ready to take out of the fridge to spread on the crepes you’ve planned to make on Pancake Tuesday, just around the corner.  Or simply pop a spoonful in your mouth at any time for an instant good mood.

(Use unwaxed lemons or give the skins a good scrub under hot water before using.)

For approximately 500ml sunny lemon curd you will need…

250g caster sugar
75g butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
6 eggs (at room temperature), beaten
the finely grated zest and juice of 3 of the best lemons you can get your hands on (you should have 150ml juice in total)
¼ teaspoon almond extract
a sprig of rosemary, lightly bruised
a pinch of salt

Put everything in a medium saucepan over a low heat. Stir gently and constantly for about 15-20 minutes or so until the mixture has thickened to the consistency of pourable custard. At no point should the mixture boil so don't be tempted to turn up the heat to hurry the process or you'll have lemony scrambled eggs. (You could also cook the mixture in a heatproof glass bowl over - but not touching - simmering water).

Once the mixture has thickened, pass it through a sieve to remove the rosemary and the grated lemon zest. Pour into sterilized jars. It will thicken up further on cooling. Seal and refrigerate for up to a month. 

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