Shaken, not stirred - with a twist!

My first cousin Jane and her husband Bob, who live in Durango, Colorado, tested this recipe out using our lemons!  Lemon drop martinis are a delicious twist ( pun intended!🤣) on traditional vodka martinis but slightly less alcoholic!  Make sure you have superfine sugar for the rim, and take a wedge of lemon and rim the glass with the fresh lemon so that the sugar will stick!  Pour sugar into a saucer and invert the glass to frost the rim. Can be done ahead for a crisp, sugary rim! Enjoy!

Lemon Drop Martini

• 4 oz. Citrus Vodka

• 2 oz. Triple Sec

• 1 1/2 oz. simple syrup

• 3 oz. fresh lemon juice

• superfine sugar for glasses

• lemon wedges

Yield is 2 cocktails

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Lemon zest is the best

You often see recipes calling for orange or lemon zest. The top layer of citrus, along with the pith (the white part), are what we call the "peel." Most of us think the outer rind is bitter and inedible, but it is actually considered a valuable addition to food because of its aromatic oils.

Scraping or cutting the rind of unwaxed fruit adds flavor to a variety of foods. For best results, use a zester or grater to remove the zest.

There’s nothing like shrimp louie salad on a hot summer afternoon with perhaps a lovely avocado salad and a glass of crisp Sauvignon Blanc (poolside, of course).

My easy go-to for locking in the most flavor is to bake shellfish -- never boil!

On a foiled baking tray, bake shrimp at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes with a drizzle of butter, sprinkle some Old Bay seasoning, your favorite seasoned salt (mine is garlic), and lemon zest!

Zest brings the flavor of lemon and complements (shell)fish without being tart. And of course, always use pesticide-free lemons from CamelliaGroves.com whenever zesting lemons!

For this particular meal, I actually used the refrigerated zest from my post a couple days ago and it sprinkled like grated Parmesan and hadn’t lost a bit of flavor. Yummy!

The original recipe is compliments of my mother who was a fabulous gourmet!

Marj's Louie Salad Dressing

• 2/3 cup mayonnaise 

• 1/3 cup catsup

• Zest of 1/2 Camellia Grove lemon ( flavor and thickening)

• 1 tsp Tabasco sauce (to taste)

• 1 tsp Accent

• 1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce

• 1/3 -1/2 cup Sake or Dry Vermouth

• Paprika and lemon wedge for garnish 

Combine ingredients and shake well in squirt bottle. Refrigerate, Shake and serve. Will hold refrigerated for up to 2 weeks!  Enjoy. 

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When life gives you lemons....make lemonade!

So, we are in the dog days of summer, a summer like no other, with many kids still under a quarantine at home and all creative ideas exhausted!  Why not make some delicious fresh lemonade from scratch!  It is so easy to do with lemons from Florida - the juiciest in the world!  

Here is my own recipe for lemonade that is a bit strong, but I pour it over a glass of ice and it is perfect!

Martha’s Fresh Florida Lemonade

• 1 cup organic sugar crystals

• Juice of 6 Florida lemons (1 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice)

• 1 whole Florida lemon, sliced

• 4 cups water with ice

Directions:

• Juice lemons and measure. Pour 1 cup juice into pitcher, add 1 cup sugar and stir with wooden spoon to dissolve.

• Fill 2 cup measuring cup with ice, then top off with water to make 2 cups. Pour into juice mixture.

• Add second 2 cups of water and stir well. Add sliced lemons. Serve over ice or straight up. Add one slice of fruit to each glass as garnish.

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