Pucker Up For Our Friend the Lemon

A tall glass of cool, sunny lemonade brings with it a longing for summer. But in reality, the peak season for this tart fruit is the winter months. So, before spring is sprung on us, I wanted to sharing a recipe and some everyday uses for our fruity friend.

"Don't be such a tart."

I love this simple lemon vinaigrette recipe, the perfect dressing for a spring mix salad.

SPRING SALAD with LEMON VINAIGRETTE

• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 1 tablespoon of white wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper

Roll the lemon on a hard surface to soften it, cut it in half and use a citrus reamer or other tool to extract the juice. Stir together the lemon juice, vinegar and mustard in a bowl. Using a whisk, slowly drizzle the olive oil into the mix until completely dissolved. Season with salt and pepper to taste. This makes approximately 3/4 cup of dressing.

To complete the salad, toss the dressing with 3 - 4 cups of mixed greens, bagged or fresh. For bagged salads, I like Spring Mixes or Baby Spinach. For fresh greens, I enjoy spinach, arugula and then something with a little color like red leaf lettuce or radicchio.

You can also top the salad with goat cheese, feta cheese or a few shavings of fresh parmesan. It's a very light, tasty starter for your meal just as outlined here.

OTHER LEMON USES
Outside of being a tasty addition to cocktails, desserts and dressings, lemons and their freshly-squeezed juice have multiple uses in the kitchen.

Clean your wooden cutting board. Because wooden cutting boards shouldn't be put in the dishwasher, here's a natural way to clean them: cut a lemon in half, sprinkle some coarse sea salt on your wooden cutting board and give it a scrub. Lemon juice is a strong acid that can eliminate most bacteria.

Keep your foods fresh. Fruits like apples and pears brown quickly after being cut because of oxidation (a big word for "what air does"). Keep them looking fresh by dipping them in fresh lemon juice. It also has the same saving affect on guacamole if you stir in some lemon juice (or the juice from its cousin, lime).

Decorate! Lemons are an affordable, simple way to brighten up any space. Place them in a bowl or vase for an easy centerpiece. Plus, after enjoying them "aesthetically" for a few days, you can then put them to use with the tips mentioned above. 

A simple bowl of lemons brigthens
up my own dining room table.

Need something to brighten up the house or your plate? Before the winter months come to a close, bring yourself closer to the sunshine of spring and summer by picking up a bag of lemons.