For the love of LEMONS....

As I kid I vividly remember enjoying "Lemonheads" - tart and zingy lemon candies. I buy lemons on a regular basis, using it in salad dressings, or simply squeezing an entire lemon into one glass of fresh lemonade. Squeeze some lemon on your food, and voila - its acidity makes anything taste better. An iced tea is not complete without several slices of lemons. Lemon squares and lemon meringue (sp?) pies are a weakness. Any other lemon worshipers out there?

I am also a raspberry freak. Lemons and raspberries go together, as do oranges and strawberries. What are your thoughts? Anybody else have the same obsession?

Paolo, do you not know our very own Bill Spencer Lemon King deluxe? Check him out.

http://www.associatedcitrus.com/

As I kid I vividly remember enjoying "Lemonheads" - tart and zingy lemon candies. I buy lemons on a regular basis, using it in salad dressings, or simply squeezing an entire lemon into one glass of fresh lemonade. Squeeze some lemon on your food, and voila - its acidity makes anything taste better. An iced tea is not complete without several slices of lemons. Lemon squares and lemon meringue (sp?) pies are a weakness. Any other lemon worshipers out there?

I am also a raspberry freak. Lemons and raspberries go together, as do oranges and strawberries. What are your thoughts? Anybody else have the same obsession?

Paulo,

As a boy, lemon rind was one of my favorite snacks. I used to help the old man next door make Italian lemon ice for his candy store. I would nibble on the rinds that were left over after the squeeze--far better than the sugar that we dumped into the blend of lemon and crushed ice.

I learned years ago to ask for lemon for my salad in most restaurants rather than their sugary prepared dressings. And I use lemon at home almost as much as I use wine. Of course, at a dollar a lemon these days I am cutting back.

I used to eat raw lemons with a little sugar on. Used to love it.

Quite like lemon (and maybe a little ginger) cooked with fish these days

I used to eat raw lemons with a little sugar on. Used to love it.

Quite like lemon (and maybe a little ginger) cooked with fish these days

Ian,

Try lemon-curry-garlic baked poultry or lemon egg drop soup--great preparations.

I once squirted lemon into a glass of cloying, near insipid Riesling at a restaurant. Made a big difference in the right direction.

So THAT's why you're a little SOUR, Tommasso!!!!

Indeed.... $1 for a lemon is painful. I've seen $1.40 here in Center City Philadelphia!

Funny story ... at least to me.

I have a dwarf Meyer lemon tree growing in half a wine barrel on my deck. The tree provides a small crop of very juicy medium-sized lemons every year. And I love the scent of the blossoms which fills my office when the tree is in bloom.

Well, last year when I picked Zari up from SFO upon her return from a lengthier visit to Iran, part of the welcome home packet was about half a dozen of my home-grown lemons. I figured she'd squeeze them over fish or something. It was kind of a personal thing. Giving things you nurture yourself to others just seems like more of an intimate gift, part of yourself and all that. Anyway ...

You should have seen me grin, however, when she bypassed the sandwiches, cookies and chocolate, and right there in the car, greedily sliced open a couple of lemons, and chowed down on them as if they were candy. "Why not," I asked myself and have started doing the same.

Paulo, I am also a lemon lover. I realized it had been a while since I had lemon meringue pie, so last evening at dinner I ordered a slice.

It was such a disappointment! It wasn't tart enough and the meringue was way too sweet. That's the thing with being a great cook and baker oneself..... sometimes (perhapd often) restaurants just don't live up to one's standards!

Funny story ... at least to me.

I have a dwarf Meyer lemon tree growing in half a wine barrel on my deck. The tree provides a small crop of very juicy medium-sized lemons every year. And I love the scent of the blossoms which fills my office when the tree is in bloom.

Well, last year when I picked Zari up from SFO upon her return from a lengthier visit to Iran, part of the welcome home packet was about half a dozen of my home-grown lemons. I figured she'd squeeze them over fish or something. It was kind of a personal thing. Giving things you nurture yourself to others just seems like more of an intimate gift, part of yourself and all that. Anyway ...

You should have seen me grin, however, when she bypassed the sandwiches, cookies and chocolate, and right there in the car, greedily sliced open a couple of lemons, and chowed down on them as if they were candy. "Why not," I asked myself and have started doing the same.

Gary,

Aren't Meyer lemons sweeter than the biggies?

Gary, Aren't Meyer lemons sweeter than the biggies?

Mine seem to be sweeter and juicier than anything I get from the store. By the way, the "dwarf" part has to do with the size of the tree. The lemons themselves are, well, average lemon-size.

Gary, Aren't Meyer lemons sweeter than the biggies?

Mine seem to be sweeter and juicier than anything I get from the store. By the way, the "dwarf" part has to do with the size of the tree. The lemons themselves are, well, average lemon-size.

If my memory is any good, I think Meyer lemons are a cross between lemon and other citrus--Mandarin, I think. I suppose that's why they are sweeter.

If my memory is any good, I think Meyer lemons are a cross between lemon and other citrus--Mandarin, I think. I suppose that's why they are sweeter.

%^)

The Meyer lemon is, in fact, a hybrid mix between a true lemon and a mandarin orange ... it was introduced into the United States by an agricultural explorer by the name of Frank N. Meyer who found it growing as an ornamental pot plant near Peking, China in 1908 ... unlike most lemons, it is faintly necked with a very short nipple ... the skin has much tinier oil glands than a regular lemon and is, therefore, much smoother skinned than a regular lemon ... the peel at maturity is a light orange and the meat is a pale orange-yellow ... the fruit usually has about 10 segments with very tender, almost melting walls between the segments ... juicier than a regular lemon ... very low in acid with a medium but complex lemon flavor with hints of sweet lime and mandarin/tangerine ... small seeds numbering from 8 to 12 per fruit ... everbearing but bears heavier from November to April ... Meyer lemons are popular as ornamental plants due to their compact size, hardiness, and productivity ... they are highly decorative and quite suitable for container growing ... if you live in a non-citrus growing climate, grow them indoors in the late Fall, Winter, and early Spring and then put them outdoors in the late Spring, Summer, and early Fall ... you'll always have Meyer lemons for those special recipes !

P.S. But DON'T quit buying MY regular lemons, please !

Clink !

%^)

My memory is holding up then!

Bill, are you saying that I could grow Meyer lemons in the Finger Lakes?

I grow figs, and last year I started an olive tree. Indoors from November to April--outdoors afterwards. Will that work with Meyers? If so, where can I get one?

Same question here, Bill. South of Thomas, but higher and probably a tad colder.

Definitely a lemon fan. I remember those Lemonheads, they were great!

My favorite Krispy Kreme donut is the lemon filled.

Thin Mint Girl Scout cookies are tops (I'm also a chocoholic, almost exclusively dark) but the lemon pastry sandwich is a close second.

Oddly though, I don't like lemon in my iced tea.

Same question here, Bill. South of Thomas, but higher and probably a tad colder.

Bob,

If you are colder in Franklin Lakes than I am in the Finger Lakes all I can say is: move.

Bill, are you saying that I could grow Meyer lemons in the Finger Lakes? If so, where can I get one?

%^)

Yep ! You sure can !

A few sources -

http://www.acornsprings.com

http://www.starkbros.com

http://www.parkseed.com

http://smithandhawken.com

http://timelesstopiary.com/citrus.php

http://www.fourwindsgrowers.com

One thing to remember - citrus does NOT like wet roots ... don't over water ... citrus also needs a lot of light ... so a southern or western exposure inside your home in the late Fall, Winter, and early Spring is the best ... and don't fertilize before Spring or after Fall - inbetween is fine and time-release fertilizers will work ...

And finally - if you get one PLEASE don't stop buying my regular lemons ... I hope I'm not shooting myself in the foot here !

Clink !

%^)

Thanks Bill. Your description matches the way I have to treat the fig trees.

How do we know when we are buying your lemons?