The Groundhog was pretty damn accurate in its pithy assessment of the upcoming winter weather, wasn’t it? We have been experiencing more than enough bitter wind, rain, snow and cold; too much of it, I’d say. And this winter snow disaster will probably continue for the entire six weeks, long enough for us to grow heartily tired of the network news coverage of snow drifts, snow thunder and icicles and careening cars on icy highways. Six weeks which take us well into March. And here we are, just a couple of days into Lent, and we are already feeling just a wee bit deprived of everything pleasant.
I am about ready for a little sunshine, aren’t you? Let’s ban the winter gloom from the kitchen. Hide the kale! Bury the Brussels sprouts! Beef stew? I don’t think so. Stash the crockpot. No more root vegetables! I yearn for sunnier climes and maybe even a whiff of the romance of the South of France. I see snowy white linens blowing on a sunlit clothesline in Provence – not the snow drifting in the back yard. I can smell the lavender. I long to feel the sun on my face. Let’s haul ourselves out of our ruminating armchair travels and bring some color and the sweet smell of citrus groves into our cold, drab lives. Let’s cook with good cheer and sunny dispositions. Let’s hunt down Meyer lemons.
Meyer lemons are sweet, orange-y citrus, with thin skins and an abundance of flavorful juice. Their thin slices can be piled onto pizzas, or inside a roasting duck. We added the zest of two Meyer lemons to our linguine on Wednesday night, and the crowd which normally roars for garlic was pleasantly surprised by the refreshing subtle zip that the Meyer lemons gave the pasta. It was practically springtime in our kitchen as we sat huddled around the candlelight, clutching our turtlenecks tighter.
Meyer Lemon Linguine Alfredo
SERVES: SERVES 4-6
Ingredients
1 pound linguine
2 cups heavy cream (or for the faint-hearted – half and half)
Zest of 2 Meyer lemons
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
Instructions
1. Boil the linguine in a large pot of well-salted water according to package directions. We used fresh fettuccine, so it cooked in just a few minutes. Boxed linguine will take longer, which can be tricky when you are trying to time the cream sauce, so pay attention!
2. Pour the cream into a large frying pan. Bring it to a boil, and then lower the heat to simmer, and reduce the liquid by about half.
3. Add the Meyer lemon zest, the Parmesan cheese and the cayenne pepper to the reduced cream in the frying pan. Drain the pasta in a colander, then add it to the frying pan. Toss the pasta quickly to cover each delicious strand with the thick creamy concoction. Fling the pasta quickly onto warmed plates and call in the troops. We added more Parmesan cheese and black pepper individually. We also added bread, and salad, and our favorite cheap white wine. Luke, the Wonder Dog, was gravely disappointed that there were no leftovers.
But this is just the beginning. You can dispel the doom and gloom of the Groundhog by merely adding a Meyer lemon to your normal everyday bag o’cooking tricks. We love it squeezed over asparagus, in risotto, in salad dressing and in hollandaise sauce. (And don’t despair if you can’t find Meyer’s lemons in your grocery store – regular old garden-variety lemons will do the trick nicely, too!) The link to the Los Angeles Times article will give you ninety-six more ways to use Meyer lemons, which should safely see you to Spring. And you can use these ideas without leaving your own back yard, which is pretty helpful since we are most likely bound to be snowed in. Again.
https://www.latimes.com/style/la-fo-meyerlemons16jan16-story.html#page=1
“Never throw away squeezed lemon, but keep them for the day by the sink. Then you can use them to remove fish, onion or garlic smells from your fingers. Or you can stick them on your elbows while you are reading a book, to soften and whiten your skin.”
― Jennifer Paterson, Two Fat Ladies Obsessions
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