When life gives you lemons..

Use its juice to marinate meats or add it to dressings for salads or to flavour food with its zest. Slice it up to garnish your dish or like Romina Lugaresi collaborative chef at BKC-based CinCin has done, steep them in vodka to make your own homemade limoncello! Loaded with the goodness of Vitamin C, lemons are versatile and a must for summery dishes and drinks. 

At CinCin, they are celebrating the fruit in all its citrusy goodness with a month-long lemon festa, with a menu inspired by the ‘Sagra del Limon’ — the Italian Lemon Festival which is celebrated in the Amalfi Coast in May. “We’ve used Sorrento lemons in our menu from an appetiser to a dessert and everything in between including cocktails,” chef Romina adds. Here’s a look at some other creative ways in which chefs have incorporated the fruit in their dishes.

Kaaji Lemon Tart 

Lemon curd is flavoured with Assamese Kaaji Lemon rind filled in a gluten-free short crust pastry. This is then garnished with dehydrated Kaaji Lemon, dusted with icing sugar and topped with Kaaji Lemon jelly.
At: Arth, Khar

Silver Needles & Kaffir Lemonade

An aromatic and refreshing lemonade prepared with two singular type of leaves, Darjeeling White Tea and Kaffir Leaves. The Kaffir crushed leaves infuse an intense refreshing citrus fragrance while the White tea provides health benefits as it’s full of antioxidants and low on caffeine. 
At: Taj Mahal Tea House, Bandra

Spaghetti Caccio E Pepe

The zest of Gondhoraj Lemon is generously sprinkled on the spaghetti which consists of Zucchini Ribbons, Cherry Tomatoes, Crushed Black Pepper, Parmesan and Pine Nuts. 
At: Toast & Tonic, Bandra Kurla Complex

Lemon Meringue Ice Cream Pie

Served with a pecan nut crumble, the Lemon meringue ice cream pie features a crumbly base and cooling lemon curd, topped with fresh-torched meringue to complete the lemon experience.
At: CinCin, Bandra Kurla Complex

Tipsy Lemonade Festival

Cool down with a range of light and refreshing lemonade-based cocktails that have lemon juice with ingredients such as cucumber, mint, ginger, honey, cranberry juice and more, combined with a variety of alcohols. With names like  Beer Berry Lemonade, Lemongrass Pineapple Lemonade, Spiced Honey Lemonade and more, these are sure to take your lemonade experience a notch higher. 
At: The Irish House, all outlets, Till May 31

Lemon and Cream Cheese Mousse

Lemon and lime zest is added to Cream cheese and Lemon curd which is whipped together to make it light and airy.
At: 266 — The Wine Room and Bar, Bandra

Recipe

Aromatic Thai Lime Lemon Rice

By Rushina Munshaw Ghildiyal

This recipe uses Kaffir lime leaves to give the classic lemon rice a delicious twist! A great way to use up leftover rice and the zest of limes which is the most flavourful part but often discarded by us. Use regular green lime leaves if you can’t get Kaffir lime leaves.

Ingredients 

• 2 tbsp Oil
• 1/2 tsp Mustard seeds
• 2 dried Red chillies, broken
• Pinch of Asafoetida, powdered
• 5 Green chillies, chopped, fine 
• 12 Kaffir lime or regular lime leaves, destemmed and finely chopped
• 1/2 Capsicum, finely chopped
• 1 Onion, finely chopped 
• 1/2 Carrot finely chopped 
• 1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
• 1 tbsp Lemon zest 
• 4 tbsp Lemon juice
• 400 gms Rice, cooked and cooled 
• 1/2 cup Peanuts, roasted and crushed 
• Salt to taste
• Pinch of sugar (optional)

Method

• Heat oil in a kadai
• Add the mustard seeds and dry red chillies. 
• When they start crackling lower flame and add the asafoetida, green chillies, kaffir lime leaves and stir fry for 30 seconds or until the spices are fragrant (do not let them burn).
• Add onions and stir-fry 1-2 minutes untill translucent.
• Add turmeric powder and mix well. 
• Add the carrots and capsicum and saute well. Cover the pan and let the vegetables cook through.  
• Add cooked rice, sugar, salt and roasted peanuts and mix well to combine. Cook on a low flame for another minute. Then take off flame.
• Add lime juice and mix well and serve hot!

Serves: 4

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes