Zest of Life

Or lemons, rather. And not really zest. More like the whole lemon. And not a regular lemon. Organic lemons. Preserved. With Salt. Yeah, I know salt is bad for you. And as a general rule, I stay away from salt. Besides it being bad for you, my body doesn't process salt well. My ankles swell and it's not a pretty sight. Think the Elephant Man (or girl). Yeah. Ewww.....

BUT- all that aside- preserving lemons is easy. It requires a seal-able jar, lemons, and salt. (Kosher salt or sea salt.)

Preserved lemons are fantastic in stews or any time you need a bit of lemon zest and don't have fresh lemons on hand. Besides, watching the lemons in the jar is magic all on its own. Seriously. They meta-morph into something wonderful!

Just rinse the lemons before use, and voila'! Fantastic lemons.

I used organic lemons. But you could use Meyer Lemons or any really good variety of your choosing.

Just slice the lemons, rub salt into the slices and all around...then place in a jar and let sit.

Once the extracted juice becomes cloudy (about three weeks), you can place it in the fridge. As long as the brine covers the lemons, they'll keep for about a year. A year! Wow!