When life gives you lemons

When Alex came by my desk and dropped off a large plastic bag I was worried. Alex is an art coordinator. She has so much energy; she makes the Energizer Bunny look like a slug. Normally her presence signifies a need for my services. As it turns out her friend has prolific lemon tree. A Meyer Lemon tree! They charge a fortune for Meyers at the farmers market. Alex knows what a foodie I am. She kindly shared the wealth. As the old adage says,” If life gives you lemons, make lemonade”. No I’ll make salad dressing, Meyer Lemon and shallot salad dressing. One part lemon juice, three or four parts olive oil, chopped shallots, salt and pepper to taste. Add a little Dijon mustard and stir to emulsify. Voila! I swear this dressing helped me cinch an A grade in my Art of Plate Presentation Class. In class I used it on roasted beets, avocado, and yuppie chow (mixed spring greens). It also tastes great on roasted or grilled asparagus. My wife April took on the Meyer Lemon challenge with her own dressing. One part lemon juice, three or four parts olive oil, lots of chopped fresh parsley, chopped garlic and salt and pepper. She used it to finish her marinated flank steak and mashed potato plate. Just drizzle a little around the edge of the plate or, like me, pour it all over everything. The fancy restaurants would put the dressing in a squeeze bottle and make little artsy swirls. That will be $32 please.
Share the bounty when you can. Free is always the best price. Enjoy!