Where's Lori K?

I haven't dropped off the face of the earth, just have had WAY too many non-food responsibilities on my plate. And now we're expecting another snow dump, so I'll be tied up for another few days with no time to write. Hang in there, and check back in a week or so. In the meantime, check out Vivace if you're in Charlottesville; we had an excellent Restaurant Week dinner there (their tiramisu is especially light and a perfect complement to the well-thought-out entrees there).

And I can't wait to try out the Meyer Lemon Pudding Cakes from this month's Good Housekeeping, but it'll be at least Monday before I can bake.

Slices of lemon

Freezing lemon slices is easier than I thought it would be, and I thought it would be easy. Lemons and cookie sheets are really all you need, and airtight containers or bags for storing them.

Start by slicing the lemons in half, and removing as many seeds as you can. Then either slice them thinly by hand, or use the food processor, with a 4mm slicing blade (the 2mm makes slices so thin you can see through them. Nice for garnish, but not so good for the freezing process). Lay them in a single layer on the cookie sheets, freeze until hard, then remove them from the cookie sheets and put them in bags and put them back in the freezer.

You can use them in water or drinks straight from the freezer; they act a little like an ice cube as they thaw out and flavor the liquid.

Meyer lemon-paloosa

My friend Joye just sent me a big box of Meyer lemons from her Sacramento yard. From the moment I opened the box, the house has smelled like lemon, Joye (sorry, I couldn't resist).

I've had a lot of fun giving them to Virginians who have never had the pleasure of one, preserving some, and today I'm going to give freezing them a try.

I heard that you just need to slice them, put them on cookie sheets, then freeze; once they are frozen stiff, remove them from the cookie tray and put them in an airtight bag.

For those of you new to preserving lemons, my recipe and technique can be found here: http://lkcafe.blogspot.com/2009/10/lemons-and-their-well-preserved-punch.html