When life hands you LEMONS ...
Try something new, such as these recipes for lemony lamb chops, or a lemon tart
Lemons get a bad rap.
When we buy a car that doesn’t run, we call it a lemon. When life gives you lemons, we say you should make lemonade, as if lemons were something merely to be endured.
It’s not fair.
Lemons are bright and sunshiny, brisk and invigorating. They add a delicious splash of life to food, they sprinkle it with the essence of spring.
I say, when life gives you lemons, you should celebrate. Yay, lemons!
It’s time we elevate the humble lemon to the pantheon of culinary flavours. And so I decided to cook two dishes that take full advantage of this most versatile of citrus fruits.
I decided to take advantage of a classic combination of flavours that is often overlooked: lamb with lemon. The tang of the lemon plays a soaring counterpoint to what many people (not me) think of as the gaminess of lamb.
I used tender and flavourful lamb chops, and created a marinade of things that go particularly well with lamb — olive oil, garlic, shallots, Dijon mustard, thyme (or rosemary) and lemon juice, plus salt and pepper. I covered the meat with the marinade for one hour before cooking it.
Usually, I grill my lamb, but not everyone has a grill. So I decided to cook mine on the stove. You don’t get any of the flavour of the fire that way, which is especially desirable with lamb, but you do get more caramelization across the surface of the meat as a trade-off.
It was quicker and easier than using the grill, and the results were marvellous. The lemon was a high note singing clearly and steadily over the earthbound meatiness of the lamb.
For dessert, I had thought to make lemon meringue pie, but I decided that was too commonplace. So I made a lemon Shaker tart.
Reputedly based on a recipe from the Shakers, this tart uses every part of the lemon, skin and all. Well, not the seeds. But it uses the whole lemon, minus the seeds.
I made cookbook author Alison Roman’s recipe, which uses a simple shortbread crust. It’s ridiculously delicious, a buttery, crisp base for the lemon custard to go on top.
The custard is also easy, but it requires some waiting time. You slice a lemon very thin, removing any seeds, and let the slices sit in a mixture of lemon juice and sugar for at least one hour and up to a full day. Then you mix in a lot of egg yolks and whole eggs, along with a bit of flour and a dash of salt, and bake it until you can’t stand how good your house smells.
The tart is an absolute delight, and it is not too sweet as many lemon desserts can be.
Maybe that’s why it’s called a tart.
LEMON LAMB CHOPS
Yield: 3 to 4 servings
2 pounds lamb chops
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 garlic clove
1 tablespoon roughly chopped
shallots
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme or
rosemary leaves
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste 2 tablespoons oil (not olive oil), if
1. Place lamb chops in a flat dish. Put lemon juice, garlic, shallots, mustard, thyme or rosemary, olive oil and salt and pepper in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour marinade over both sides of lamb and let sit at room temperature for 1 hour, turning once or twice.
2. Set up grill for direct heat or place a large, heavy skillet over high heat and add 2 tablespoons oil. Cook meat, turning once or twice, until desired doneness (about five minutes total for medium rare for 3/4-inch chops).
Per serving (based on 4): 413 calories; 25 g fat; 5 g saturated fat; 150 mg cholesterol; 48 g protein; 2 g carbohydrate; 5 g sugar; 2 g fibre; 217 mg sodium; 28 mg calcium
Recipe by Daniel Neman
LEMON SHAKER TART
Yield: 8 servings For the crust
■ 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
■ 2/3 cup powdered sugar
■ 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
■ 12 tablespoons (11/2 sticks) melted
■ unsalted butter
For the filling
■ 1 Meyer lemon or 1 regular lemon, very thinly sliced, seeds removed (see notes)
■ 1 cup granulated sugar
■ 3/4 cup Meyer lemon juice or regular lemon juice
■ 3 large egg yolks
■ 2 large eggs
■ 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
■ 1/4 teaspoon salt
Notes: Use a sharp or serrated knife to cut the lemons; do not use a mandoline.
— Crust can be baked two days ahead, tart can be baked one day ahead.
1. Make the crust: Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine the flour, powdered sugar and salt in a medium bowl. Drizzle in the melted butter and mix until it’s well combined (it will have a sort of Play-Doh-type texture). Press this into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch tart pan or 9-inch springform pan. Use a measuring cup to flatten it and make sure it’s all even.
3. Bake the tart shell until it’s a pale golden brown on the edges and baked through on the bottom (it will lose that greasy shine), about 20 minutes.
4. Make the filling: Toss the lemon slices, granulated sugar and lemon juice in a medium bowl. Let this sit out at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours to soften the peels.
5. Whisk the egg yolks, eggs, flour and salt in a medium bowl, making sure zero lumps remain (if there are stubborn bits of flour, then strain the mixture; otherwise they’ll float to the top and won’t disappear when baked), and add the mixture to the bowl with the lemon slices. Toss everything to combine, then transfer to the crust.
6. Bake the tart until the edges are set and the centre just barely jiggles, about 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool completely before slicing.
Per serving: 327 calories; 21 g fat; 12 g saturated fat; 162 mg cholesterol; 6 g protein; 58 g carbohydrate; 36 g sugar; 1 g fibre; 533 mg sodium; 28 mg calcium