Meyer Lemon Tree
Life Happens…and it has been happening to me with a vengeance! In the past few weeks I threw my baby girl a 3rd birthday party, nursed her back to health after she got sick, then I got sick, then my mother got sick. But then my mother got sicker, and sicker and is now hospitalized. She will recover, and is getting stronger every day, thank goodness!
But my other baby, Black Girl Chef’s Whites has been neglected. I will be back with more of my original recipes soon, but for now I am re-posting a recipe for my fabulous pound cake, which is one of my mother’s favorite cakes to make and to eat.
Organic Meyer Lemons
Some may disagree with my rather opinionated title, but this really is a special pound cake. I grew up eating this cake (and have the hips to prove it) and I have not tasted a more scrumptious pound cake.
Many years ago in Louisiana this pound cake recipe was handed down to my mother Vera Lee by her cousin Zephyr Stephens. And years before it had been handed down to Zephyr. And now it is mine.
Growing up in Pasadena, CA everyone had some sort of fruit tree in their yard. We have Meyer lemons, so that is what I use to make the glaze for the cake. Because Meyer lemons are sweeter and more floral than other lemons, it really makes a difference in the flavor of the cake.
The cake is called “Millionaires Pound Cake” and you can find variations on many recipe websites. The common link seems to be that the recipe was passed down from one generation to the next. If anyone knows the exact origin of the recipe I would love to know.
Best Pound Cake Ever
1 lb butter, room temperature
3 cups sugar
6 large eggs, room temperature
4 cups flour, sifted
3/4 cup milk
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp lemon extract
Glaze
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup fresh Meyer lemon juice (any fresh lemon juice will work)
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter and flour 16 cup angel food/pound cake style pan.
In electric mixer cream butter and sugar. Add eggs one at a time, beat until incorporated. Add flour and milk alternately, ending with the flour. Add extracts, beat well, making sure to scrape down bowl as needed.
Pour batter into prepared pan, bake for 1 1/2 hours until pick inserted in cake comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack for 30 minutes, then remove cake from pan.
Mix glaze ingredients and pour over the cake while still hot.
Let the cake cool (slightly at least) then devour. And you will devour it…
It seems like I have picked at least a hundred pounds of Meyer lemons off my trees, yet every time I look at them they are still loaded with fruit! I’m not complaining about it though. I love these lemons, and their versatility. Their scent is floral, sweet and totally intoxicating. Their taste is sublime. Just like I did as a child, my daughter will eat them right off the tree. I love my lemons.
But what to do with my abundance of lemons? Lemon curd, preserved lemons, cookies, cakes, lemonade, etc. etc. etc.! All good choices, but I wanted to think outside of the box. As I was walking into my house I passed my little jalapeno bush. It is a scraggly, gnarled little plant that always seems to have jalapenos on it! I don’t feed it, barely water it, but it keeps giving me peppers. Having a toddler preschool aged child, I don’t cook with them as often as I would like, as my daughter tends to yell “Too spicy mommy!” So I keep the hot sauce and peppers at a minimum these days.
It’s time for those jalapenos to be shown some respect, so I came up with a recipe that features them alongside my beloved lemons. This lemon and jalapeno relish is a great compliment to fish, chicken or pork. It can also be spooned over grilled or roasted vegetables. The fresh citrus bite, along with heat of the jalapeno really brightens flavor.
Organic Meyer Lemon and Jalapeno Relish
1 1/2 TB finely grated Meyer lemon zest
2 small jalapenos, extra small dice
2 TB pine nuts
2 TB lemon olive oil
1 tsp Za’atar spice*
1/2 tsp sea salt
juice of one Meyer lemon
In the picture below you can see how fine the zest is grated, and how small the jalapenos are diced. This is important so your mouth is not overwhelmed by either the citrus or the heat of the pepper. If you do not have a microplane zester, chop the lemon zest as fine as you can with a knife.
I call for a lemon olive oil, but the actual oil I used is a specialty olive oil from O & Co that is flavored with clementines and lemons. The citrus flavor is so intense and fresh, and is an excellent drizzling oil.
In a small bowl, combine the zest, diced jalapenos, olive oil, Za’atar spice, salt and lemon juice.
In a small skillet over a medium high flame, toast the pine nuts.
Pine nuts can go from raw to burned seemingly at the speed of light, so be careful while toasting them. I know how quickly they can burn, and I still burned the first batch! Do Not Walk Away From The Stove While Toasting Pine Nuts!
Let the pine nuts cool, then add them to the relish. At this point let the relish sit for a couple of hours to let the flavors meld. The relish is best eaten within a couple of days, so make it when you know you will use it. I sauteed a salmon fillet, and spooned the relish over it. Very tasty, indeed!
*Za’atar spice can be found at Middle Eastern markets, or ordered online at Vanns Spices. You can also make your own from recipes found online, such as this one from About.com.
