I love it when neighbors give me the bounty of their yards. Recently, I was gifted big, juicy Meyer Lemons. Meyer Lemons are a hybrid of a mandarin orange and a lemon. They have a slightly different taste than a regular lemon. I’m also an amateur forager– can one be a professional forager? I pick dandelions, greens, and weeds from my yard daily to throw into my kefir smoothie or augment a salad. I like eating produce that is
- not mass-produced
- is not sold in stores. This might be because of a hippie childhood, but also because the produce we buy is picked well before it’s ripe so it can travel. Which means HARD and often lacking in flavor. I’ve given up on The lemons I got from my neighbor fresh store bought strawberries. These gifted Meyer Lemons would explode if they were put on a truck or train to come to a super market near you. Also, Lemons can easily go for .80 cents and up per fruit, so the Scottish thrift in me likes a deal! But, this meant the clock was ticking.
I chose to make two totally different dishes.
Greek Lemon Potatoes. An easy side dish that goes well next to any grilled fish or meats.
And a more ambitious Meyer Lemon Cake from the Chez Panisse Cooking cookbook by Paul Bertolli and Alice Waters.
I tend to cook things of late that I have an emotional connection to. I was engaged to a Greek man many years ago and went to Greece a few times and loved it. My late husband, Chef Mark Peel, was the assistant pastry chef at Chez Panisse before he became big in his own right. Alice Waters was always nice to me when I saw her, and I know she appreciated Mark’s talent.
In this blog, I will often speak about cooking through my grief. I am better than I was, but I am still in it, and probably always will be. But, cooking brings me and my children close to Mark again.
A few notes on some things I like: (As an Amazon Affiliate I can make a commission from things purchased from these links)
In the video, you will see my Eufy. My robo vac is like my sweet, robot child, but that robot helps me clean! Unlike my human children. I have it running in the kitchen after I cook and it’s essential for getting the fistfuls of black hair that fall off my Lab.
The cake can be made in any Pan, but I used a silicone heart-shaped pan. It popped right out!
Meyer Lemon Cake
Meyer lemon cake is a crowd-pleaser. Everyone loves the sweet and tart flavor and moist crumb, and you’ll love how easy it is to make.
Ingredients
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 4 large eggs, separated
- 1/4 cups sugar
- 2/3 cup buttermilk
- 1⁄2 cup Meyer lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon Meyer lemon zest
- 2 cups cake flour
- 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt For the glaze:
- 1⁄2 cup Meyer lemon juice
- 1/3 cups confectioner's sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F.
- Melt the butter in a saucepan.
- In a mixing bowl, beat together the egg yolks with 1 cup of the sugar until thick and light in color, about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Beat in the buttermilk, Meyer lemon juice, and zest.
- Sift to- gether the cake flour, baking powder, and the salt.
- Beat the egg whites until they hold soft peaks.
- Add the remaining 4 cup of sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks form.
- Repeat with the remaining flour and egg whites.
- Take about 1 cup of the batter and stir it into the melted butter.
- Gently fold the butter into the cake batter.
- Pour into a buttered and floured 9-inch cake pan or Bundt pan and bake for about 50 to 60 minutes.
- While the cake is baking, make the glaze: Combine the 1⁄2 cup Meyer lemon juice and the confectioner's sugar in a saucepan.
- Heat until the sugar is dis- solved.
- Set aside until the cake is done.
- When the cake is finished, cool for 5 minutes in the pan.
Notes
Turn the cake out of the pan and invert on to a cooling rack. With a long toothpick or skewer, poke the top of the cake to make many small holes. Slowly spoon the warm glaze over the cake. Allow the glaze to sink into the cake before adding more. Poke more holes if necessary. Use all of the glaze. Cool the cake completely and serve with crème Chantilly, if desired.
