Recipes with lemons

Louisiana crawfish boil with liquid crab boil, cayenne, bay leaves, honey, and citrus: 50 pounds of live crawfish cooked for 7 minutes, then soaked an hour to absorb spicy-sweet brine.

New Orleans-style barbecue shrimp baked in the shell in a buttery, garlicky sauce with lemon, Worcestershire, and cayenne. Grab some crusty French bread for dipping because that sauce is the whole point.

If you love the taste of lamb, you will enjoy every bit of this succulent dish.

Sabayon sauce made with egg yolks, red and white wine, sherry, and fresh citrus, spooned warm over strawberry ice cream sundaes. A French classic for entertaining.

Italian pollo alla diavola or "devil's chicken" with butterflied bird marinated in chili-infused olive oil and lemon, then grilled hard over coals until charred. Classic Tuscan grilling.

Louisiana courtbouillon with red snapper and oysters in a dark roux-thickened tomato sauce with the Creole holy trinity, mushrooms, and bay. Served over hot rice. A classic Cajun seafood stew.

Lemon and Garlic Chicken with Spring Market Vegetables recipe

Fillets of sole Riviera are breaded and pan-fried, served on roasted pepper strips with thick tomato slices, rolled anchovies, and a warm anchovy-lemon butter. A stunning French-Italian seafood platter.

Broiled swordfish steaks topped with a lemon, oregano, and sweet red pepper sauce. Cooked over white wine for a bright, Mediterranean-style seafood dinner.

Lemon slice muffins with a whole lemon round baked into the bottom of each one, inverted to reveal a caramelized citrus top. Bright, buttery, and bursting with real lemon flavor.

Old-fashioned watermelon honey preserve made from the white rind, slow-cooked with sugar, lemon, and fresh ginger into a thick, golden spread. A heritage canning recipe worth reviving.

Veal scaloppine pounded thin, pan-seared in butter and olive oil, then finished with a lemon, caper, garlic, and parsley pan sauce. Classic Italian technique, ready in 30 minutes.

Lemon-yogurt coffee cake baked in a bundt pan, with tangy yogurt for a tender crumb, plenty of fresh lemon, and whipped egg whites folded in for lightness. A bright, buttery cake for brunch or with tea.

Old-fashioned pumpkin preserves with lemon and mixed spices, slow-macerated overnight in sugar then boiled until clear and glossy. A heritage canning recipe for fall.

If you run out of preserved lemons, or decide on just a few day's notice to cook a chicken, lamb, or fish dish with lemons and olives and need preserved lemons in a hurry, you can use this quick five-day method taught to me by a Moroccan diplomat's wife. Lemons preserved this way will not keep, but are perfectly acceptable in an emergency.

Classic Caesar salad with romaine lettuce, garlic oil, coddled eggs, Worcestershire, lemon juice, Parmesan, and croutons. Tossed tableside-style in the traditional method.