When life hands you lemons.....

My parents were born in Germany, where vinegar was commonly used to make salad dressings, so when they came to California in the 1950’s it was vinaigrette they were used to.

Ironically it was a German couple, a distant relative of my father’s, that introduced our family to the lemon. Living only a block from the beach, we visited the Wilhelm’s in Oceanside throughout the year, making what seemed to me as a young child like a long trek from Los Angeles to Orange County. But mostly we celebrated holidays and special occasions at their house. Being about their parents’ age, the Wilhelm’s were likely surrogate parents to my mom and dad in those early years after arriving in California.

At the Wilhelm’s in Oceanside. They are on either end
and the older couple in the middle are my
grandparents, visiting from Germany.

I’m certain that Mrs. Wilhelm cooked traditional German foods at those celebrations but I know she also took on some American traditions, as old photos recently unearthed revealed pictures of Thanksgiving turkey. Mr. Wilhelm was a cake decorator, having learned that trade in Germany. What both my dad and I remember vividly is Mrs. Wilhelm’s liberal use of lemons. He recalls finding her salads so refreshing that he became a huge fan. And strangely, there must be a genetic component to this because I, somehow, took to them, too and have loved lemons for what seems like all my life.

As most southern Californians know, this part of the world has been home to the citrus industry for a long while, perhaps even since before 1804, I’ve discovered. Lemons, oranges and grapefruit have been grown, packaged, and shipped from southern California all over the country for over 200 years!

We enjoyed our share of this bounty, as well as so many other “treats” my parents had probably never known, growing up in Germany in the 30’s and 40’s. I have no idea what it’s like having to grow up with the lack of fresh food like produce. Once in this country, I can only imagine how they must have enjoyed having access to citrus and other fruits, dates, avocados and nuts. But the thing I will always associate my dad with is lemons! We put the juice on so many things, using it mostly with olive oil to make salad dressings. This is something I have blogged about before: my recommendation that you  make your own. Bottled dressings contain a lot of questionable ingredients. Poor quality oil chiefly among them. Making dressing is so easy! After following a few recipes to get the hang of it (2-3 parts oil to 1 part acid), dust off your blender and get creative. You’ll be doing your health and your wallet a big favor.

Lemons have a surprising number of health benefits, such as:

• Improving heart health
• Blood sugar regulation
• Fighting kidney stones
• It contains Vitamin C for cold prevention and an immune system boost
• Protection against anemia
• Aids in digestion
• Flushes out the system

How to use the juice:

• In your daily water. Add a few squirts of liquid stevia and some ice to make a no calorie, no sugar lemonade. I do this almost every day.
• Squeeze some lemon into iced tea
• Drizzle garlic butter with lemon over steamed veggies or fish
• Perk up dishes that need a little “something”. Sometimes just a little lemon adds an element that finishes the dish.
• To acidulate cut veggies and fruits to keep them from oxidizing (browning)
• To lighten blond hair! We used to do this when I was a kid. We’d wash my hair, then rinse some lemon juice through it, then I’d go sit in the sun to let my hair dry. Today, I’d need a LOT of lemon to take on the gray!

Me, at 3. Just got a record player for my
birthday, so I’m rockin' out!