Tuesday, December 27, 2011

When life gives you lemons...

Make lemonade

My sister in Las Vegas sent us this beautiful fruit for Christmas. The pomegranates grow on a bush in her backyard and the big globes are almost bursting with seedy fruit. I pulled one open yesterday, and Nova ate about half of it. She kept asking for more "cranberries" and when I told her they were pomegranates, the word changed to "cranapoms." Two-year-olds are adorable without even trying.

Marji said the lemons were from her neighbor's trees. They're nothing like the thick-skinned, pithy ones we pay a dollar for at the grocery store here. When I squeezed them, each had almost a half cup of tart-sweet juice. I was determined to use each and every drop. Homemade lemonade in December? Why not. I made a pitcher, and it was a big refreshing hit on Christmas day. If you're ever lucky enough to have a surplus of home grown lemons, give this simple recipe a try.

Perfect Lemonade

1 cup sugar (can reduce to 3/4 cup)
1 cup water (for the simple syrup)
1 cup lemon juice
3-4 cups cold water (to dilute)

Make the simple syrup by heating the sugar and water in a small saucepan until sugar is dissolved completely. Extract the juice from 4-6 lemons or enough to make 1 cup of juice and strain. Add the juice and sugar water to a pitcher and 3-4 cups water to the desired strength. Refrigerate for an hour and then serve over ice.

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