I have already told you about the vegetable garden in my backyard. Alongside the organic garden, I cultivate a mini-orchard with a variety of fruit trees: Grapefruit, orange, clementine, mango, loquat, and lemon. A few weeks ago, I noticed that the upright lemon tree was completely dotted with large, bright yellow spots that stood out against its green background. I immediately grabbed my camera and started taking photos. I was surprised by the number of lemons the tree produced in the garden, and I couldn’t believe their size. This time, they were truly huge, the size of pomelos or large citrons.
I picked the lemons that were close to me and piled them in a wide basket. I washed, cleaned, wiped, and dried them thoroughly. Some were packed in brown paper bags as gifts for my friends and family. Some were kept for everyday use in the kitchen. From the rest, I chose to make preserved lemons and limoncello liqueur. There are several versions of preserved lemons. Here, I suggest the short and easy version from North African cuisine. The second recipe, for the wonderful limoncello liqueur, is also easy to prepare. Keep it in a tightly sealed bottle in the freezer.
Preserved Lemons
Difficulty level: Easy
Preparation time: About half an hour
Dish type: Pareve
Ingredients
For a 2-liter jar:
1 kg lemons
½–1 cup salt
1 tbsp harissa or hot paprika
2 cups water
Preparation:
Slice the lemons into thin slices and place them in a wide bowl.
In a separate bowl, mix the salt and harissa, stir, and add the water.
Arrange the lemon slices in layers in the jar and pour the pickling mixture over them. Seal the jar tightly and place it in a shaded spot for six to seven days. You can garnish with a few small Shatta peppers and whole garlic cloves.
Limoncello Liqueur
Difficulty level: Easy
Preparation time: About half an hour
Dish type: Pareve
Ingredients
For about 1½ liters:
15 fresh lemons
3 cups (600 g) sugar
3 cups (750 ml) mineral water
750 ml 95% pure alcohol
Preparation:
Peel the lemons (yellow part only) with a peeler and place in a wide bowl.
Bring sugar and water to a boil in a saucepan. Mix well, remove from heat, and let cool.
Pour the sugar syrup and alcohol over the peels and stir. Let sit at room temperature for 48 hours, then strain and transfer to bottles. Store in the freezer.
Pascal’s Tip: Collect decorative glass bottles to store the liqueur in.