luscious lemon butter

:: I’m always a sucker for fresh home-grown produce straight from the farm or suburban tree.

Whether it be a handwritten sign on the side of a country road proclaiming “CHERRIES” or “FREE RANGE EGGS”, or the cardboard box outside someone’s front gate overflowing with mandarins (in this case it seems no sale pitch is necessary), I’ll always stop in my tracks for the goods. You just can’t beat stuff straight from the source.

In this case, one of our colleagues brought in a giant cooler bag of homegrown lemons and I didn’t need much more invitation to help myself!

I always associate lemon butter with my grandmother, who used to make large batches and hand them out at Christmas time. Rich, tangy and oh so delicious, it’s perfect spooned over vanilla ice cream or used as the filling for citrus tarts.

This recipe makes about three cups. Don’t let the leftover egg white go to waste – you can use them to make meringues and serve topped with whipped cream, lemon butter and passionfruit pulp.

12 egg yolks
1 1/2 cups castor sugar
3 tbsp lemon zest
250ml freshly squeezed lemon juice
200g unsalted butter, chopped into small pieces

Place the egg yolks, sugar, lemon juice and zest into a heavy-based saucepan and whisk together over medium heat until thoroughly combined.

Stir continuously with a flat-bottomed wooden spoon until thick and bubbly. Be patient, as the sauce thickening happens quite rapidly and you don’t want the sugars sticking to the bottom of the saucepan.

Remove from the heat and add the butter one piece at the time, stirring until melted through the mixture.

Chill the lemon butter in the refrigerator until firm and pour into sterilised jars. They make lovely homemade gifts for family and friends, especially if you’ve got a long list for the festive season.

Best wishes to you all for Christmas and thank you for your encouragement and input over the year.

I’ll be getting on a plane for the UK in just over five hours, so table twenty eight is officially on holiday for a month! I look forward to sharing my photos and stories with you when I get back.

Warm regards, Angelica