Lemon Ice

This year, I have completely fallen in love with lemons. I've always liked them, but am crazy for them this year. I have a few lemon recipes lined up to try and, if they turn out, I'll be posting them as I work on them. Also, a side note: Dear Simply Lemonade, thank you for making the world's best lemonade. I think I've drank so much it's replaced the blood in my veins.

This is the easiest and most refreshing summer desert I can imagine eating when it hits over 100 degrees this August. It is simple, and CHEAP. The only real cost is the lemons. It does take some baby-sitting so make it when you're going to be home and able to stir it every 20-30 minutes or so.

My brother told me something interesting tonight. When water becomes ice, it increases volume by nine percent. So this recipe calls for 4 cups of liquid which means you'll get approximately 4 1/3 cups of finished product.

Lemon Ice

3 cups water
1 1/4 cup sugar
zest of two lemons
1 cup of fresh squeezed lemon juice (takes 4-5 lemons, depending on size)

Bring the water to a simmer. When simmering add the sugar and stir to dissolve. Bring the water to a boil and let cook for 5 minutes. While the water is boiling, zest two of the lemons. Just before removing from the heat, toss in your lemon zest and give it a quick stir. Remove pan from heat and let cool to room temperature. Meanwhile, juice the lemons until you have 1 cup of juice. Once the sugar water is cooled, add lemon juice and stir. Pour into a pan (I used an 8-inch square pan because we have a side-by-side refrigerator with what seem like microscopic shelves) and place in the freezer.

Here is where you can let your attention wonder. It will be fine if you don't stir it for the first hour. The only exception to this is if you're using a metal sheet pan; if you are, do NOT walk away - you'll get a frozen mixture very quickly. Once it starts to form ice crystals you need to keep on it. Stirring every 30 minutes is fine at first, but the more frozen it gets the more frequently you should stir it. When it is ready it should be opaque and on the firm side of mushy. Scoop it in a dish and enjoy! I'll try to take a picture of it tomorrow.

It's been too long!

I've been trying new recipes last month and have one I'm ready to post, but when I came here I was SHOCKED that I hadn't posted anything in almost a year! This means I've dropped the ball on a few recipes that I thought I posted. I'll get to those soon. Right now, it's way past my bed time and once again I'm watching the Julie and Julia movie - which means that if I go to bed now I'll just lay there awake thinking about cooking, recipes, and all the stuff I don't yet know.

Of course, in the last year my Amazon wish list has grown a great deal. Even today I was researching Black (also called Onyx) Cocoa. I can't find that or even Dutch-processed Cocoa in any grocery store around here. Last week, I added tart pans to my wish list. Like I said, it keeps growing and growing and growing. Too bad my Powerball ticket tonight was a loser. Oh, I also roasted my first red peppers a couple weeks ago. They're wonderful, just like I thought they'd be. That same weekend I tried several other recipes, all of which need further tweaking.

But thanks to lots of help from my wonderful brothers, the garden is planted and growing. I think I'll have my first batch of fresh peas and green beans in a month or so (they're in the picture on the left, am I being too optimistic?), which is very exciting. Here's a couple pictures of my first garden attempt and I'll post my new recipe in a separate post.