Cuisine – A special Mother’s Day treat 

We always know when winter is around the corner as the first flush of citrus fruits appear. Limes and mandarins abound on the roadside stalls of the district, bringing the comforting knowledge that these hardy fruits will provide the extra vitamin C we all crave at this time of the year. Little mandarins, with their lovely easy-peel skin, are perhaps the most popular of all citrus fruits. Perfect for the kids in their lunch boxes, the mandarin is also one of the most delicious between-meal snacks. The peeled segments make a wonderful addition to salads or cheese boards and are terrific in a dessert like a fruit salad.

Dried mandarin peel often appears in recipes to add surprising bursts of flavour. It’s sad to see citrus peel wasted when it is so easy to make and keep. Wash and dry the peel, cut into neat pieces and either drape on a rack in a dry place for several days, or speed the drying process up by placing in a very low temperature oven for about three hours. Store in an airtight container and add to soups, casseroles and stews. For a sweet version, cut thin strips of mandarin peel and layer with caster sugar in a wide-necked jar. Cover and shake the jar each day for a week. This sugared peel can be chopped into cakes, puddings or added to icing.

The lovely lingering fragrance of limes is captivating, and they will never be cheaper than right now.  As a lime ripens, the skin gradually turns from dark emerald green to a pale, pale gold.  So when choosing your limes, look for fruit that are paler. Another tip is to take the lime in your hand and feel its weight. If it’s light as air, discard it in favour of the heavier fruit, which will be far juicier.

Limes are a great way to add a touch of acidity to food. A little grated zest and some lime juice finds its way on to our dinner most nights. Sprinkle zest on fish and chicken and use lime juice to make salad dressings. This will give a lift and lots of lovely flavour to any salad. Also try a generous squeeze over broccoli, carrots and other sweet vegetables, like pumpkin and kumara, to add surprising extra zing.

For Mother’s Day, this fragrant dessert will win the heart of your Mum. It is light and delicious with a very distinct lemony flavour. My own mother will turn 98 this month, and it is a perfect dessert for someone who can no longer tackle anything chewy or that needs cutting up. For a really pretty treat, present the lemon posset in a small old-fashioned china tea or coffee cup.

This is a rich dessert made with just three ingredients – cream, sugar and lemon. It never fails to set like magic, but must be made ahead of time. It is also easy to transport to celebrate the special day.

Lemon posset with mandarin

500mls cream
150g caster sugar
75mls lemon juice
2 tsp gently grated lemon rind
2 mandarins

Put the cream into a saucepan and add the sugar. Stir with a wooden spoon to dissolve the sugar as the cream comes to the boil. Reduce the heat so that the cream is at a very gentle simmer for three minutes. Make sure it does not rise up and bubble over.

Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice and the rind. As it cools, pour into tiny ramekins, little glasses or coffee cups. Leave in the refrigerator overnight or for at least two hours to set.

To serve, peel the mandarins carefully, removing as much of the stringy white pith as possible. Cut slices through the middle of each mandarin with a very sharp knife and place a slice on each pot or glass of lemon posset. Serves 4 -6

Lauraine Jacobs
www.laurainejacobs.co.nz/blog/