The first bottle of Lemon Wine I made in April was opened Friday. It’s sweet … very sweet. I wasn’t even sure there was alcohol in it until about five minutes after I finished the glass. To me, it tasted like lemon syrup.
I sent a bottle up to my sister’s house so they could try it. My oldest sister had to be forced to even try it. My older sister said it tasted more like lemon liquor (suggesting mixing it with club soda), and my brother-in-law tried it over ice.
I’m glad I had them try it because I really didn’t know if I liked it or not. At least none of us keeled over dead from it! LOL!
I was gifted with approximately 10 pumpkins. A friend wasn’t expecting the vines to come up this year so we had plenty to give to co-workers, neighbors, and hold onto.
So, I was looking around online. I usually freeze my pumpkin puree but here’s a woman who cans it! I figure, using her recipe, I’ll end up with pumpkin pie filling with one quart being enough to make two pies. I am so excited!
I was gifted with a lot of lemons from my neighbor’s tree last week. I didn’t realize just how many I had until I washed them all! What the heck was I going to do with all those lemons?
So far, I have started Lemon Wine. I used this recipe:
Grate all lemons and put them aside. Halve the lemons and squeeze the juice into one gallon of boiling water.
When the water boils again, cut off the heat at once. Pour the hot liquid over the sugar and stir until all the sugar is dissolved.
Cut up the raisins and add these to the liquid. Then add the lemon rind and allow the brew to cool. Sprinkle the yeast on top and stir in. Cover and ferment for 14 days after which you strain and bottle. Leave it for one to three months and enjoy (in moderation… this has quite a kick).
Note
I gave some to my sisters and they said it tastes like limoncello.
I used the canning instructions from the National Center for Home Food Preservation (.pdf link below) but this recipe.
Ingredients
Instructions
If you are using fresh squeezed lemon juice, taste it. If it is sweeter than store bought lemon juice, then add a little citric acid. Stir until the citric acid is dissolved, then taste again. If it is still too sweet, continue doing this step until you are satisfied.
Combine the sugar and lemon zest in a small bowl, stir to mix, and set aside about 30 minutes.
Heat water in the bottom pan of the double boiler until it boils gently. The water should not boil vigorously or touch the bottom of the top double boiler pan or bowl.
In the top of the double boiler, on the counter top or table, whisk the eggs. Slowly whisk in the sugar and zest, blending until well mixed and smooth. Blend in the lemon juice and then add the butter pieces to the mixture.
Place the top of the double boiler over boiling water in the bottom pan. Stir gently but continuously with a silicone spatula or spoon, to prevent the mixture from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Cook until the mixture reaches a temperature of 170 degrees F.
Remove the double boiler pan from the stove and place on a protected surface, such as a dish towel on the counter top. Continue to stir gently until the curd thickens (about 5 minutes). Strain curd through a mesh strainer into a glass or stainless steel bowl; discard collected zest.
Note
Here is the .pdf with the detailed instructions to water bath can this recipe. To download it, right-click, then choose “Save As.” Lemon_Curd .pdf
Right now, I have some Bitter Orange Marmalade (Orange-Lemon Marmalade) going in my crock pot (because my stock pot has the wine in it). Not sure if it will get hot enough to thicken, so I may have to separate and cook in batches. This recipe I got out of Stocking Up III by Carol Hupping and the staff of the Rodale Food Center. I used Mandarin Oranges, since I had a lot of those that needed to be used.
An aromatic and delicious variation of the classic.
Ingredients
Instructions
Place oranges, lemons, and water in an 8-quart stainless steel or enamel saucepan. Cover and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer 2 hours.
Remove fruit; seed and quarter. Chop fruit in food processor or by hand. Return to water.
Bring fruit mixture to a boil. Stir in honey and sugar. Return to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly, until mixture resembles a thick syrup, 15 to 30 minutes. (Keep at a full rolling boil or it will take longer to reach the gel stage.)
Pour into hot, scalded half-pint jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace, and seal. Process for 10 minutes in a boiling-water bath.
Allow the marmalade to "age" for 2 weeks before tasting or it may be too bitter.
Note
Based on the recipe from Stocking Up III by Carol Hupping and the staff of the Rodale Food Center
The next (and I hopeful final) recipe I will be making is a Lemon Meringue Pie. I’ll be making this one tonight, using a recipe out of The Joy of Cooking (which is basically this recipe by Alton Brown):
Adjust the oven rack to the middle position. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Whisk egg yolks in medium size mixing bowl and set aside.
In a medium saucepan, combine cornstarch, water, sugar, and salt. Whisk to combine. Turn heat on medium and, stirring frequently, bring mixture to a boil. Boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and gradually, 1 whisk-full at a time, add hot mixture to egg yolks and stir until you have added at least half of the mixture.
Return egg mixture to saucepan, turn heat down to low and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 more minute. Remove from heat and gently stir in butter, lemon juice, and zest until well combined. Pour mixture into pie shell and top with meringue while filling is still hot.
Meringue Topping
Place egg whites and cream of tartar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat egg whites until soft peaks form and then gradually add sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks form, approximately 1 to 2 minutes. Use to top lemon filling.
Make sure meringue completely covers filling and that it goes right up to the edge of the crust. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until meringue is golden. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack. Make sure pie is cooled completely before slicing.
I was wrong! One more recipe, since there were just a few lemons left over. I made Lemon Extract! I remembered a wonderful Lemon Poppy-seed Bread recipe an online friend of mine gave me (I don’t have permission to post it here) and my lack of the necessary ingredient Lemon Extract. So, I made some!
One of the biggest treasures I have found online is from Michigan State University. It’s a site called Feeding America and features over 70 American cookbooks from the late 18th to early 20th century. I really can’t begin to tell you how much computer space I have in old cookbooks. If only I could have physical copies of them ALL.
Here’s one of the first I found (and tried recipes from). Please consider investigating the old cookbooks that are out there still. They can be invaluable, especially since they teach us so many things we have lost over the generations.
Wash and wipe six hundred small cucumbers and two quarts of peppers. Put them In a tub with one and a half cupfuls of salt and a piece of alum as large as an egg.
Heat to the boiling point three gallons of cider vinegar and three pints of water. Add a quarter of a pound each of whole cloves, whole allspice and stick cinnamon, and two ounces of white mustard seed, and pour over pickles.
The fish should be thoroughly washed, and soaked in cold water over night.
In the morning drain the fish and add fresh water. Turn on your burner to high, until it comes to a boil. As soon as the water comes to the boiling point, reduce to a simmer.
From four to six hours will cook a very dry, hard fish, and there are kinds which will cook in half an hour
Put milk on to boil, keeping half a cupful of it to mix the flour. Whisk in flour with 1/2 cup of milk. Once the milk boils, whisk in flour/milk mixture.
Add the fish, season with salt and pepper, and cook on medium heat for 10 minutes.
Heat water in a pot on medium high heat until it boils. Break each egg onto a small plate, then let the egg slide into the water. Poach all six eggs until desired doneness.
Place the toasted bread on a platter. Pour the fish cream over each slice, then top with a poached egg.
Garnish the dish with points of toast and parsley.
Pare the potatoes and boil half an hour; then drain off the water, and mash them light and fine. Add the salt, pepper, one tablespoonful of butter, and the cupful of milk, which has been allowed to come to a boil. Beat very thoroughly, and spread a thin layer of the potatoes on the center of a hot platter. Heap the remainder around the edge, making a wall to keep in the cream and fish.
To Prepare The Fish
Put the pint of milk on to boil with the onion. Mix flour and butter together, and when well mixed, add two tablespoonfuls of the hot milk. Stir all into the boiling milk, skim out the onion , add the fish and cook ten minutes. Season with pepper, and if not salt enough, with salt.
Pour into center of the potatoes, garnish the outer ring with parsley, and serve.
Note
This is a nice dish for breakfast, lunch or dinner.
Pare the potatoes and boil thirty minutes. Drain the water from them, and mash very fine; then mix thoroughly with the fish.
In a small saucepan, scald the milk or cream. Then add this, butter, salt, and pepper to the potato mixture.
Let mixture cool while you beat the two whole eggs. Add to potato mixture, spread in a 13 x 9 inch baking dish, and bake for 10 minutes.
Separate the last two eggs, setting aside the yolks. Beat the yolks. In a very clean bowl, beat the egg whites to a stiff peak, then fold in 1/4 teaspoon salt and the yolks.
Remove baking dish from oven, spread egg white mixture over the top, then return to the oven to brown. Serve.
