Lemon Olive-Oil Rosemary Cake

This is a lovely, light, tasty unusual cake that’s great with tea. Sometime I’m going to try making it substituting honey for part of the sugar… I think that would be even more tasty. The recipe is based on one from Epicurious, with a few changes.

3/4 cup olive oil (extra-virgin if desired), plus additional for greasing pan
5 large eggs, separated, reserving 1 white for another use
3/4 cup plus 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 large lemon
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves
3/4 cup cake flour (not self-rising)
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon of salt (used in two halves)
pinch of cream of tartar

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

2. Take a loaf pan and grease it lightly with olive oil (spray oil is great for this). Then line it with parchment paper (it’s fine to just rip off a big chunk of paper and leave it hanging out of the pan) and grease the side of the paper facing the cake as well.

3. Combine egg yolks and olive oil in a medium mixing bowl. Beat them together until they’re smooth and well combined.

4. Zest the large lemon. If you’re using a microplane zester, you can add the zest directly to the egg yolks and olive oil; if you’re using a zester that produces long strips of zest then mince the zest before adding it. Then squeeze the juice from the lemon into the mix, being careful not to add any seeds to it (wrapping the lemon in cheesecloth, or squeezing the juice into a separate bowl first are both effective ways to do this). (I’m very fond of this microplane zester).

5. Mince the rosemary leaves and add them to the mixture. Be sure they’re fresh! Dried rosemary will be both stronger and not as good-tasting.

6. Add 1/2 cup of sugar to the mix. Beat it in until the resulting mixture is smooth.

7. Add the flour, cornmeal and 1/2 teaspoon of salt to the top of the mixture. Gently mix this in by hand - do not use a power mixer. If you overmix the flour, the cake will be tough.

8. Now take the 4 egg whites you reserved, add the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt and the cream of tartar, and beat the whites until foamy (this is a great place to use an electric mixer). Make sure that the bowl you’re using and the mixer blades are clean and completely free of fat (so if you were using this mixer a moment ago to beat the eggs - make sure yo’ve thoroughly cleaned it first). If there’s any fat present, the egg whites will not achieve the consistency you’ll need.

9. Gradually add the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar to the egg whites as you continue to beat them. You want to beat them long enought that they form stiff peaks. Don’t over beat them. And use them as soon as they’re ready.

10. Gently mix 1/3 of the egg whites into the flour/egg/oil mixture. Then take 1/3 of it and fold it in, using gentle repetitive folding motions. Repeat with the last third.

11. Put the batter in the greased, lined loaf pan. Sprinkle remaining 1 and 1/2 tablespoons of sugar on top. Bake for approximately 45 minutes. A toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake should come out dry; if it doesn’t, bake a few minutes longer. Cool on a rack for 10 minutes, gently remove from the pan, and let cool to room temperature before serving.

Makes roughly 8 servings.

LEMON PECORINO DRESSING

For the dressing:
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (about 1 large lemon or 2 small lemons)
1/3 cup olive oil
1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano
1 clove garlic, smashed
25 grinds black pepper
Few pinches salt

Good to toss over mixed salad (baby arugula is best!).

LEMONCELLO (or LIMONCELLO)

Here's the recipe for Lemoncello which I got from the SF Chronicle food section last winter. I've discussed it with a restaurateur friend who makes an incredibly tasty version and he doesn't age it quite so long. Also, the spelling Lemoncello/Limoncello seems to be unsettled even in Italy.
· 15 thick-skinned lemons (Eureka, Lisbon, or Citron)
· 2 bottles (750ml) 100-proof vodka
· 4-1/2 cups sugar
· 5 cups water
Instructions:
Wash the lemons in hot water before you start. Remove the peel with a vegetable peeler, removing all white pith on the back of the peel by scraping with a knife, and put the peels in a 4-quart Mason jar.
Add 1 bottle of vodka and stir. Cover the jar, date it, and put it to rest in a dark cabinet at room temperature.
After 40 days, take out the vodka-lemon mixture. In a saucepan set over high heat, stir the sugar and water together and boil for 5 minutes. Let the sugar syrup cool completely in the pan, about 10 minutes. Add the sugar syrup to the vodka-lemon mixture along with the second bottle of vodka. Stir well to combine. Replace the cover on the jar and note the finish date. Return it to the dark cabinet and store for 40 more days.
At Day 80, remove the limoncello from the cabinet. Strain the mixture and discard the lemon peel.
Pour into clean, unused bottles with caps or decorative corked bottles. Store the bottles in the pantry, but put one bottle at a time in the freezer until ready for use.
Makes approximately 3 quarts.

Limoncello Sorbet
Yield: 8

* 1 cup water (250 ml)
* 6 tbsp sugar (90 ml)
* 1 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice, strained (250 ml)
* 1/2 cup limoncello (125 ml)


Directions:
Limoncello Sorbet

1. In a small saucepan combine the water and sugar. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
2. When the sugar has completely dissolved, remove the pot from the heat and let the syrup cool – this preparation is called a simple syrup and is a foundation ingredient in the preparation of sorbet.
3. In a bowl, combine the simple syrup and the lemon juice, whisk to combine and refrigerate until chilled.
4. Pour the sorbet base in an ice cream freezer and freeze according to manufacturers directions.
5. Remove the lemon sorbet and store in an airtight container until ready to serve.
6. Divide the lemon sorbet between 8 chilled glasses, drizzle with the limoncello and serve.

Almond Citrus Olive Oil Cake

Cake:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons orange zest
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1/4 cup whole milk
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted, coarsely crumbled
Powdered sugar, for sifting

Citrus Compote:
2 tablespoons grated orange peel
3/4 teaspoon orange blossom water, optional
3 oranges, segmented
2 pink grapefruits, segmented

To make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly oil an 8-inch-diameter cake pan. Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl to blend. Using an electric mixer, beat the sugar, eggs, and zests in a large bowl until pale and fluffy. Beat in the milk. Gradually beat in the oil. Add the flour mixture and stir just until blended. Stir in the almonds. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Place cake pan on baking pan to collect any possible spills. Bake until a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out with moist crumbs attached, about 35 minutes. Transfer to a rack and cool for 15 minutes. Remove cake and place on serving platter, top side up. Sift powdered sugar over the cake.

To make the citrus compote: Stir the orange peel, blossom water, and 2 tablespoons of accumulated juices from the segmented fruit in a small bowl to blend. Arrange the orange and grapefruit segments decoratively in a wide shallow bowl. Pour the blossom water mixture over. Cover and let stand 15 minutes for the flavors to blend.

Cut the cake into wedges and spoon the citrus compote alongside.

FRESH BASIL LEMON SAUCE

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 clove of garlic, smashed (more if you like garlic)
1 tablespoon good Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Cup Fresh Basil Leaves
Salt and Pepper to taste

Process all in the blender. Drizzle over grilled chicken that's been marinated in a lemon marinade overnight.

Those look like some good recipies-- I can't wait til my lisbon lemons start getting ripe. This is my first crop from this tree, but I probably have at least 40 to 50 lemons-- plus 3 grapefruits from one of my ruby red buds that I put on it last fall.