Yum Peaceful Cooking: lemon
Showing posts with label lemon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label lemon. Show all posts

Sunday, September 3, 2017

Lemon Ice Box Pie with Blueberries


It may not feel like it to some of you, and especially not to me (as I sit in a massive heatwave for the past week and a half, sweltering in triple digit, record breaking temps) but summer is almost over (thank God). School is in full swing and its Labor Day weekend! The unofficial final summer bash. Barbecues, picnics, pool parties and dashes to the beaches are all in order. None of which are without food. And none of which should be without dessert.

Lemon Ice Box pie is the perfect summer dessert. My grandmother in Alabama used to make it, I have always loved it, and therefore it's very southern my mind. If you haven't tried, give yourself a treat. It's quick, easy and so refreshing. 

And....there's no baking required. As in....no turning on the oven!! Not even for a minute.

Oh...but I added a little twist to the original recipe. You see, I happen to have a thing for lemons and blueberries. It's like a match made in heaven. Tart, tangy, sweet, zingy, bright and refreshing all at the same time. 

Besides.....how many of you have that extra can of sweetened condensed milk sitting in your cupboard? You know the one I'm talking about.....it's left over from the holidays, and every time you search your cupboard for a can of something....it gets shuffled around from one spot to the next.

Guess what.....that can has a destiny....and your need of a last minute dessert for that fabulous pool party you've been invited to tomorrow, requires that can. 

Let me take a wild guess....that can is probably Eagle Brand. Am I right? I know there are other brands out there...but when I'm looking for sweetened condensed milk during the holidays, its that label that my eyes are searching for. It's iconic. Almost legendary in its own right. 

Sooo....grab that can and let's get this party started!



This will make two pies if using the store bought graham cracker crust pie shells, or you can make one big huge mega deep dish pie like I did. Or, you can get out a 13x9 casserole dish and make it that way. Here's the recipe for the graham cracker crust if needed:

3 cups finely ground graham crackers
2/3 cup sugar
12 tablespoons melted butter

Mix the graham cracker crumbs and the sugar, then stir in the melted butter. Press into 2 - 8 or 9" pie pans. Chill it in the fridge for about an hour or so. 
   
Now for the main attraction!



Lemon Ice Box Pie with Blueberries

1 can Eagle Brand sweetened condensed milk
12 oz Frozen Cool Whip, slightly thawed
6 oz  frozen lemonade concentrate
8 oz Blueberry jam or preserves (or more if desired)
Fresh blueberries to garnish
Fresh lemon zest to garnish
2 graham cracker crust pie shells

Combine the sweetened condensed milk, cool whip and lemonade concentrate until smooth. Set aside.

Spread the jam evenly along the bottom of the graham cracker crust pie shells. Divide the lemonade mixture and pour into each pie. Refrigerate until set. Garnish with fresh blueberries and lemon zest and enjoy!












Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Limoncello and a Strawberry Lemon Drop to pass the time


Limoncello is one of my favorite liqueurs. But it's a little pricey depending on the brand you buy. And let me tell you....brand makes a huge difference. I've tried a few. One of them was just awful. If I had tried it the first time I ever had limoncello, I would never try it again. Ya, it was that bad.

Anyway...I'm not here to recommend what brand you drink or like...I'm here to show you how to make it yourself. It's not difficult. The most challenging part is getting the skin off the lemon without getting any of the pith (the white stuff) and of course waiting for the end results. Yes...it is time intensive. It's not cheap either. But it is less expensive than buying it from the store. I figure approximately 2/3 the cost (kinda like a "buy 2 get 1 free" sorta thing). Although I did get my lemons for free, which helped.

I've heard a lot of talk over the years about various methods and scientific measuring based on the alcohol used vs the simple syrup added. Rather than letting it intimidate me...I just went ahead and did it. One of my best foodie friends, DeeDee showed me a website that has great information, which is where I went to for all the how-to's and what-for's: Limoncello Quest They have enough information to keep me out of trouble but not too much as to make me shy away from the experience. I have to admit here....they recommended straining the alcohol before beginning the process. I didn't do it.

Here's a little basic info on the two main ingredients:

Lemons:
Smooth skinned lemons are recommended. Thick skins help. Organic is best (less time spent scrubbing the pesticides and wax off and most likely having some still end up in your alcohol). For me, I chose to zest the lemons rather than peeling them. I'm not good enough at peeling without ending up with a lot of pith on there. Besides, peeling is very time consuming. Whats the issue with pith? Bitter. You do not want to end up with bitter results and pith will do that.

Everclear:
There are two proofs out there: 151 (75.5% ethanol) and 190 (95% ethanol). California only sells the 151 proof so I went with that. Just an FYI...Vodka is 80 proof (40% ethanol). There are those out there that think they'll just use Vodka. I wouldn't. If you can get Everclear...do it. For
more info look it up on Wikipedia: Everclear


To start off, you will need:

1 gallon jar with a tight fitting lid
2 - 750ml bottles of Everclear (pure grain alcohol)
17 lemons

Thoroughly scrub your lemons in warm water with a vegetable scrubber. Carefully zest them, making sure you do not zest down to the pith.


Combine the lemon zest and the alcohol in your 1 gallon jar.


Put the jar away in a cool dark place for 45 days. You don't need to do anything. Leave it alone. Forget about it. It might be helpful to put a sticker on the jar with the date you started to help you keep track of time.

Now you have a whole bunch of lemons that are going to dry out in no time. All that lemon juice. Time to start squeezing and freezing


You won't need it for the Limoncello, but you don't want to waste it either. Make lemonade. Or even better, make a drink


Strawberry Lemon Drop
2 parts vodka
1 part lemon juice
1 part simple syrup
a few strawberries

Combine all ingredients, shake with ice and strain into a chilled glass. Garnish the edges of your glass with a little sugar and a strawberry. DELICIOUS!!!

Back to the Limoncello....fast forward 45 days (and lots of Strawberry Lemon Drops later) you will need:

3 1/2 cups white sugar (do not use brown)
5 cups of water

Combine sugar and water in a pot and bring to boil. Allow to boil, stirring once or twice for 5 minutes or until the sugar has dissolved. Allow to cool completely then add to your lemon zest and Everclear mixture. Stir

 

Aaaaand put it away. Again. For 45 more days.

Shhhhh....don't whine and complain. It's worth it. Use the time to find a few cool bottles to put your freshly made liqueur into.

Once the final (yes, I said final) 45 days are up....it's time to get busy. Using a strainer, strain out the zest.


Then line the strainer with a coffee filter and strain again (you can strain it a few more times if you'd like...I was too lazy that day and only did it once through the coffee filter.)






Pour into bottles and store in the freezer. Not because it has to be in the freezer...but because Limoncello tastes best extremely chilled.


I had bought my favorite store brand to compare


On the left is mine...the right is from the store. The big test.....the taste. There is a HUGE flavor difference. The store bought product tastes more like lemon heads (that lemon drop candy), its a lot sweeter and it appears to have some yellow dye in there. Although it is good. With the homemade version...you can taste the fresh lemons. The sweetness doesn't hit you over the head. It's smooth and refreshing. If you had to compare it in a nutshell...its like comparing homemade lemonade to powdered lemonade mix.

Yes it worth it!! Especially if you have an abundance of free lemons to play with.

Want another cocktail recipe? Check this one out:


Strawberry Limoncello
1 cup frozen or fresh strawberries
3 TB simple syrup
3 TB lemon juice
1 cup limoncello
1 cup club soda

Combine all ingredients in a blender and puree. Pour into chilled glasses. Garnish with lemon slices and strawberries.


Sunday, July 12, 2009

Happy Birthday Lemon Cupcakes

One of the gals at work was having a special birthday and I was informed that the birthday gal wanted me to make her a lemon cake.

Cake? I really don't do cakes very well. I mean, the baking part is fine but when it comes to frosting.....it's a mess. And I was thinking...what kind of icing do you put on a lemon cake?

I did some research. Browsed some blogs and look what I found on Kahakai Kitchen Blog.....Lemon Cupcakes!! She adapted the recipe from Ina Garten's Lemon Cakes by making them lighter. Well heck...this was for a special birthday...why would I want them lighter? Photobucket

So off to Ina's recipe I went...and looky at what I made for Emily's umm..."the new 40th" Birthday!

Lemon Cupcakes!!!

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Look at all these goodies that you'll need (lots and lots of lemons)....

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Preheat the over to 350 degrees F.

1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar, divided
4 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1/3 cup grated lemon zest lightly packed (and a little extra for garnishing)
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
3/4 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract


First of all...I didnt have 2 sticks of unsalted butter (my daughter used it by accident) so I used 1 stick of unsalted butter and 1 stick of salted butter. It was fine.

Now... I zested a bunch of lemons (probably 8)

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Then I sifted together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt...just to make sure there weren't any lumps (especially that powder and soda....they always seem to be lumpy)

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I think I ended up sifting this twice. I really wanted to get a cool photo of the flour mixture floating into the bowl (kinda reminds me of when it snows) but after 2 tries I was convinced that it would be impossible for me to take the picture, hold the sifter in one hand and crank the turn handle with the other. Ya, it should've been a no brainer to realize that in the first place but it was like 10pm and I was just a wee bit tired. Photobucket

Now the fun begins!

In a separate bowl, cream the butter and 2 cups of granulated sugar for about 5 minutes. (all I heard while I was doing this was..."MOM!! When are you going be done with that? I can't hear the teeee veeeeeeeeeeeee!" Photobucket

There are more important things going on here child! I'm making cupcakes...from SCRATCH! And I'm under pressure cuz they're special birthday cupcakes and I've never made these before and what if they dont taste good? What if I don't make them right? What if...what if.... Photobucket

Ok...take a deeep breath...and lets continue...

This step of mixing the butter and sugar is very important (I know this cuz Ina told me so). You need to beat the crap out of that butter and sugar until its light and fluffy.

See?

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Now...with the mixer on medium speed, add the eggs one at a time to your fluffy cloud-like butter mixture

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Most of you should know this but just in case, please break the eggs into a dish before adding them to your recipe. Not only does this prevent you from adding a spoiled egg, but it also gives you the opportunity to remove any shells without having to dig through the batter...cuz remember, the mixer is running and that little piece of shell will be gone in a split second.

Then add the lemon zest.

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It's turning yellow (they call me mellow yelloooow)
I just screwed myself cuz I know I'm going to go to bed with that song stuck in my head!

In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup lemon juice, the buttermilk and vanilla.

Beginning and ending with the flour mixture, add the flour then the buttermilk mixture, alternately.

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I didn't know it was going to make so much! It almost overflowed....yikes

Pour into the cupcake pan (this made about 30 cupcakes) and bake for about 22 - 25 minutes, or until the toothpick comes out clean. (Ina said that it would be done when the cake tester comes out clean. Is there such a thing or is that just a fancy name for toothpicks?).

While they're baking, combine 1/2 cup of granulated sugar and 1/2 cup of lemon juice in a small saucepan. Cook over low heat until the sugar dissolves. (this is what we call lemon simple syrup).

hmm....I wonder what happened to my simple syrup picture. Did I take one? Did I delete it? hmmm. Well, it kinda looked like thick water in a pan. You're not missing much.

While the cupcakes were still warm, I poked holes in the tops with my fancy cake tester toothpick and drizzled the simple syrup over the top of each one.

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Let the cupcakes cool complete (as I hoped and prayed that this would happen before midnightPhotobucket )

For the glaze you will need:

2 cups powdered sugar
3 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Combine the powdered sugar and lemon juice in a bowl, mixing with a wire whisk until smooth.

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Pour over the tops of each cupcakes and sprinkle with a little lemon zest....

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Don't those just look so pretty? They're cupcakes but they look sooo adult, don't they? And I didn't have to "frost" them and put party sprinkles on them either.

How did they taste you ask? Well take a look at this....

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They were the lightest, fluffiest cupcakes I've ever had. Reminded me of Angel Food cake (not quite that airy but for a cupcake, they came pretty damn close.

And the flavor! You gotta love lemon! It's intense. You almost want to pucker but just when you think you're gonna, the sweetness takes over. And it leaves your mouth refreshed. No lingering overly sweet icing stuff to deal with. You know? I just hate that icing on those store made cupcakes. Leaves a film in your mouth.

Anyways...Emily enjoyed her cupcakes and so did the rest of the staff. I think they were all gone by lunch time. I'm glad I had the opportunity to make them and I was very flattered that my baking was requested Photobucket

And I finished right around midnight....just in time to pass out in bed!

Happy Birthday Emily!