Tag Archives: Lemon

Lemon & Lavender Sugar Cookies

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Makes 48-52, dependent on cookie cutter size

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 3 teaspoons dried lavender flowers
  • 2 Tablespoons lemon zest
  • 1 small Tonka bean finely grated
  • 1-2 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • 2 sticks butter
  • 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 egg white, beaten

Method

  1. Combine the sugar, lavender, lemon zest, and grated tonka bear in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until combined
  2. Cream together the butter and 1/2 cup lavender sugar mixture, until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. Add the flour and salt. Beat until combined, and dough starts to become crumbly. Add 1-2 tablespoons of lemon juice until the dough comes together
  3. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut out the cookies using your preferred cookie cutter. I used 1 1/2 inch fluted and plain circular cutters for bite-size cookies. Carefully transfer the cookies to a parchment-lined baking sheet using a spatula.
  4. Cover the baking sheet with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 10-15 minutes. Roll out the leftover scraps, and repeat with the dough
  5. While the cookies are chilly, reheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Brush each cookie with beaten egg white, then sprinkle with the remaining lavender sugar
  6. Bake the cookies on the middle rack of the oven for 12-13minutes or until just lightly golden on the edges. Cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely
  7. Cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

Cherry & Peach Pavlova w/ Tonka Bean Lemon Curd

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Makes 9 inch pavlova, yields 8-10 servings

Ingredients

Pavlova

  • 3 large egg whites
  • ½ cup fine sugar
  • ½ cup dark brown sugar
  • ¼ tsp cream of tartar, or ½ tsp lemon juice or vinegar
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 2oz dark chocolate, chopped
  • 1 cup whipping cream
  • 1 ½ cups mascarpone
  • 3 ripe peaches, sliced
  • ½ lb cherries, halved and pitted
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon rum
  • Toasted, flaked almonds (optional)

Tonka Bean Lemon Curd

  • 5 unwaxed lemons
  • 1 cup white sugar
  • 1 medium Tonka bean (1 inch), grated using a micro-plane
  • 3 whole eggs and 3 yolks, room temperature
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 7 Tablespoons butter, cubed, softened to room temperature

Method

Pavlova

  1. Preheat your oven to 250°F. Cover a large baking tray with baking parchment and trace a circle, about 9-10 inches in diameter, on to the paper. Turn the paper over so the drawn-on side is facing down but still visible
  2. In a clean, dry bowl of a stand mixer, using whisk attachment, whisk the egg whites until frothy, then add the cream of tartar and whip to soft peaks. Reduce the speed to medium-low and with the whisk continuously running, add in the salt and the sugars a spoonful at a time, until thick and satiny
  3. Spread the meringue inside the drawn circle, creating a nest by making the sides a little higher than the centre. Place in the oven and bake for 3 hours, then switch off the oven but leave the meringue inside until completely cool: this will take about 2 hours. Once cool, remove from the oven and set aside
  4. Place the chocolate into a small heatproof bowl and set it over a small saucepan of simmering water, making sure the base of the bowl is not touching the water. Stir occasionally until melted. Cool slightly, then brush the chocolate inside the meringue nest, leaving the top and sides bare. Do this gently, as the meringue is fairly delicate. Leave to set for about 2 hours
  5. Place the cream and mascarpone in a large bowl and whisk for about 1 minute, until stiff peaks form. Be careful not to over-whisk, If the mixture begins to split use a spatula to fold a little more cream into the mix to bring it back together. Refrigerate until needed
  6. In a bowl combine the peach slices, cherries, sugar and brandy. Leave to macerate on the counter while you prepare the curd

Tonka Bean Lemon Curd

  1. Zest three of the lemons into a bowl with the sugar and grated tonka bean. Rub together with your fingertips to release the oils, then squeeze enough the lemons to give 1 cup juice
  2. Whisk the eggs into the sugar followed by the lemon juice, a little at a time, until fully incorporated
  3. Put in a heavy-based pan over a low heat and stir continuously with a rubber whisk or wooden spoon until thickened- which should take about 7 minutes. Strain into a medium bowl to remove any lumps or debris
  4. Whilst gently whisking, start dropping in the butter, a  tablespoon at a time, beating well at each addition until incorporated before adding in the next. When all the butter has been added continue beating until smooth
  5. Cover with cling wrap and allow to cool fully in the fridge before use

To assemble

  1. Carefully spoon the cream/ mascarpone mixture into the centre of the meringue. Using a teaspoon, place dollops of the tonka bean lemon curd onto the cream and swirl using a knife or chopstick.
  2. Top with the macerated fruit, drained of liquor, and pipe drizzles of additional curd over the fruit
  3. Sprinkle with a few toasted, flaked almonds for a finishing touch and serve immediately

Lemon (& Lime) Bisque

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Makes 9×13 sheet dessert

Ingredients

  • ¾ cup sugar
  • 1 (3-ounce) package lemon-flavored gelatin (Jello-O)
  • 1 cup boiling water
  • Zest 1 Lemon
  • Zest 1 Lime
  • ¼ cup mixed juice from 1 lemon and 1 lime
  • 1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs
  • 1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk, chilled overnight

Method

  1. Combine sugar and gelatin in bowl and stir to dissolve in boiling water
  2. Stir in lemon and lime zest and juice. Refrigerate until mixture is thickened but not completely set, about 1 hour
  3. Grease 13 by 9-inch baking dish with flavourless oil and coat with ¾ cup graham cracker crumbs
  4. In a large bowl, whip evaporated milk until stiff peaks form, about 5 minutes. Transfer mixture to large bowl
  5. Whip chilled gelatin mixture until thickened and light lemon colored, about 4 minutes
  6. Using large spatula, fold gelatin mixture into whipped evaporated milk until no yellow streaks remain. Transfer mixture to prepared dish and smooth top. Sprinkle remaining ¾ cup graham cracker crumbs evenly over the top
  7. Cover and refrigerate until fully chilled and set, at least 4 hours or up to 24 hours
  8. Serve and enjoy!

Earl Grey & Lemon Shortbread

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These are a perfect bite for afternoon tea. Buttery, deliciously crumbly shortbread laced with floral Earl Grey and spiked with the zesty burst of sunshine from a lemon glaze- they are practically perfect for an al fresco tea break in the sunshine.

This is my tried, tested recipe as approved by my Scottish husband! Whilst traditional shortbread is a straightforward (and tasty!) mix of three simple ingredients – butter; flour and sugar, here I’ve added ingredients that I’ve found amplify a shortbread’s more desirable properties. The combination of semolina, rice flour and cornstarch elevate it’s crumbly moreishness while at the same time preventing it from becoming a chalky, dry shard.

I usually cut mine into the no-fuss finger shapes – easy to handle whilst sipping, whilst maximizing the dough amount. Using a cookie cutter is possible but may result in some surplus offcuts. If you choose this route a handy hint is to stir the offcuts into ice-cream. Even more to enjoy!

Check out this #recipe for Earl Grey & Lemon Shortbread

Makes 24

Ingredients

Earl Grey Shortbread

  • 1 2/3 cups AP Flour
  • 2 ½ Tablespoons Earl Grey loose tea
  • 1/3 cup Semolina
  • 2 Tablespoons Rice Flour
  • 1 ½ Tablespoons Cornstarch
  • ½ cup fine sugar
  • ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
  • 1 cup/ 2 sticks salted butter, cold and cubed

Lemon Glaze

  • ¾ cup powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest
  • 2-3 teaspoons fresh lemon juice (to taste)

Method

To make the shortbread

  1. Lightly grease and line a 9″ x 12″ traybake tin
  2. In a food processor, combine the floor and the loose tea leaves. Pulse 4-5 times until leaves are mixed finer into the floor
  3. In a large bowl combine the flour/ tea mixture, semolina, rice flour, cornstarch, sugar and salt. Whisk together to further combine
  4. Add in the cubed butter and rub together with your fingertips until the mixture is just beginning to bind together. Every so often do a quarter turn of the bowl to make sure you’re using all the dry mixture. You’ll want a texture somewhere between breadcrumbs and damp sand before you stop. Be wary of overworking the butter into the mixture – you want to avoid a dough that feels slimy from the butter melting too much into the dry ingredients
  5. Tip the crumb mixture into your prepared tin and press the dough so that it forms a solid layer. Level the surface with the back of a spoon or measuring cup, making sure the mixture is evenly spread and uniform. Prick all over with a fork
  6. With a knife or pizza cutter score the shortbread into 24 rectangular pieces (2 cuts by 7 cuts) taking care not to cut the full way through the compressed crumb
  7. Refrigerate for 30 mins minimum
  8. Preheat your oven to 325°F
  9. Remove the shortbread from the fridge and bake for about 35 minutes or until a very pale golden brown.
  10. Remove from the oven and after 5 minutes rest in the tin, cut fully through the baked shortbread with a knife or pizza cutter at the score lines you previously made
  11. Leave to cool in the tin for 15 minutes. Carefully lift the fingers out of the tin with a palette knife or the parchment paper overhang and finish cooling on a wire rack
  12. While the shortbread cools, prepare the lemon glaze

To make the Lemon Glaze

  1. In a bowl or jug combine the powdered sugar and lemon zest. Add the fresh lemon juice to your personal taste (2 -3 teaspoons)
  2. Make sure the shortbread pieces are fully cooled before glazing. Dip or pipe the glaze onto the shortbread pieces to your personal preference. (I usually transfer mine to a piping bag and drizzle lightly over the shortbread)
  3. Store in an airtight tin for up to a week

Meyer Lemon Bars

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So these were part of the “Citrus Binge” I went on recently (see my other post on Minneolas Tangelo & Cardamom Cheesecake). Meyer Lemons have an almost mystical place in my  mind. Living in the UK they were harder to get hold of than here in Canada, AND when they were available they certainly didn’t last long! Needless to say when I saw them whilst shopping of course I was itching to make something from them!

I was pleasantly surprised when I got my hands on them. Scent-wise yes they evoked sun-kissed, floral dense getaway images but there was also a heady herbaceousness to their smell. It instantly brought to mind citrus-scented herbs like lemon verbena and lemon thyme- bright, sunny grass-like. Taste-wise it’s easy to see why Meyer lemons capture the imagination and have such acclaim. Think of the best homemade lemonade- just the right side of tart with enough refreshing astringency to keep you coming back for more. Yup, I was hooked.

Bars/tray-bakes have never been top of my list for “GO TO” eats. Aside from two I always pass on them- the wonderful Canuck treat that is the nanaimo bar (of which I have a few posts on this site – check them out in “Categories”) and the quintessential classic that is the Lemon Bar. The contrast between the buttery, crumbly shortbread layer and the refreshingly pucker-inducing citrus custard thickness evokes images of languid, sun-drenched picnics for me. I don’t know about you but given that I’m writing this on Day 27 of self-isolation in the Time of Covid I could definitely do with images of unbridled expanse and carefree torpor. The confinement will pass in time I know but I’m of the opinion that no matter how frivolous or trivial a distraction if it helps with our current state of sanctioned ennui then all the better.

And so here we are…

 

 

Ingredients

  • 2 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 cup icing sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) very cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
  • 1 to 2 teaspoons ice water
  • 5 large eggs, at room temperature
  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon Meyer lemon zest
  • 3/4 cup fresh Meyer lemon juice

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a 9″ x 13″ baking pan and line it with parchment paper, leaving 1″ of overhang on the two long sides.
  2. In a food processor, pulse 2 cups flour, 3/4 cup powdered sugar, and salt. Add butter and pulse until mixture resembles a coarse meal. Add ice water 1 tsp at a time if mixture is too dry. Press dough into bottom of prepared pan, pressing snugly against the inside edges.
  3. Bake crust for 20-25 minutes, or until golden. Set pan on a wire rack to cool slightly. Reduce oven temperature to 300°.
  4. Whisk together eggs and granulated sugar until well combined and pale in color. Stir in lemon zest, lemon juice, remaining 1/4 cup flour, and a pinch of salt. Pour topping over warm crust. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until set.
  5. Set pan on a rack to cool. Remove squares by lifting parchment. Cut into bars. Dust liberally with icing sugar
  6. Bars are kept refrigerated and eaten within 24 hours

*If Meyer lemons are available this recipe works just as well with standard lemons. But admittedly Meyer lemons DO elevate them.