Simple Lemon Butter and Citrus Cleaner

Hmmmm, a bowl of lemons has been sitting on my kitchen bench now for over a week.  The best kind of lemons - free ones.  Time to do something with them.  

Lemon Butter - this is a very simple recipe which takes about 20 minutes and makes only about two cups. Since its so easy to make and ill be the only one eating it in our house,  i figure i had better not make too much at once.

2 Large Lemons
1/2 Cup Sugar
60gm of Butter
2 Eggs
2 Tspns of cornflour and a little water

Grate the rind from two lemons.  I'm loving my new grater which collects the rind in the curved top and allows me to just pour it into the bowl.  Previously i used a zester and chopped it with a knife.

I microwaved the lemons for 45 seconds before squeezing to help release the juice.  Strain the pips.

Combine lemon rind & juice, sugar and butter in a double saucepan (or in my case a bowl over a saucepan) and stir over simmering water until the sugar is dissolved and butter melted.

Beat eggs in a separate bowl and stirring constantly (i used a flat whisk) add gradually to the bowl in a steady stream until combined and stir until thick.  Don't try to rush this by having the heat up to high.  The last thing you want is lemon butter with scrambled egg in it.  I wanted to be sure mine was thick and so i added just a little cornflour paste and cooked for a further 3 minutes. This is optional.

Whilst i was doing the above i had two clean jars in the oven at 130 degrees for ten minutes to ensure they were sterilised.  Once i had poured the hot mix into the hot jars and sealed the lids tight, i upended them onto their lids and put them back in the oven.  I turned oven off and let them cool.

This pic was taken once it was refrigerated.  I'm looking forward to having this on toast for breakfast (occasionally).  It will keep in the fridge for two months.

In a few weeks ill be going on a bit of a break and so i also have planned to make and freeze some Lemon Coconut Slice and also to make some Lemon Cordial with juice that i have frozen in ice cube trays.  There might even be a Lemon Curd Tart in the near future.

Citrus Cleaner

I was visiting a friend on Sat and admired her jar of lemons in vinegar sitting on her kitchen window sill.  The morning sun was shining through the jar and it was almost glowing with liquid sunshine.  I made a comment and was invited to raid the MANDARIN tree which was overflowing with fruit to make my own.  Apparently mandarin peels release their oils more freely than other citrus and so are great for making citrus cleaner.

I peeled all the mandarins, freezing the segments for later use in cooking, and generously salted the peels  popping them into a bottle.  The salt aids the release of oil and is an added cleaning agent. Now in my opinion the only good thing about Chivas Regal is the bottle (i don't can't drink alcohol).  I found one in the office, empty, when i turned up after the Christmas Party and so I took it home to be reused for something.  I let the peels and salt rest for a few hours and then filled the bottle with white vinegar. I gave it a small shake and it now rests on my kitchen window sill.  Having a pergola outside the window means i wont have any direct sunlight passing through it but it does look nice. IMO :)

Having it in view will remind me to give it a little shake every so often.  It should be ready for use in a few weeks and it should smell of what ever citrus you used and the vinegar should be tainted the same colour.   If you only want a weak solution for cleaning then when it is ready pour an amount into a spray bottle with the same quantity of water.

This also reminded me to give the vanilla & vodka infusion a little shake as well.  I definately need to put some more pods in there but they are so expensive.  The onces i have were given to me.  Its a pity we cant grow them down here in the South.

There you go, another post telling my loyal readers what they probably already know.  Sometimes i feel my adventures in being more self sufficient are a little low grade compared to some of the amazing "green" things others are doing.  This is, however, a personal journal for myself, my interstate family and friends.  When I'm old and grey and I've lost my marbles i'll be able to remember when......

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