Every year around this time (December/January) I look forward to one thing — and while I’d love to say that’s a beautiful white layer of fluffy snow, it’s actually something that’s round and yellow.
Here in Phoenix, we’d be hard-pressed to see snow (although we have had it in past years, it hasn’t stuck around too long!) – but we do get to enjoy the lemon season and right now I’m drowning in lots and lots of lemons. I love this round, yellow citrus fruit – not only do I love to throw the peels in my garbage disposal to freshen it up, I also enjoy being able to make lots of lemonade, lemon bars, and lacto-fermented lemons.
When most people think of fermentation, the first thing that comes to mind is wine or beer…
With wine or beer, certain yeasts are used to convert the sugars in grape juice to wine, or grains into alcohol, but it’s actually the bacteria that are responsible for lacto-fermentation.
Lacto refers to the Lactobacillus bacteria — and you can find this bacteria on the surface of plants (especially those that grow close to the ground), in our GI tract, in our mouth and ladies… even in our vaginal tract.
Appealing, right? (I know, you are probably thinking – eww!)
These Lactobacillus bacteria have the ability to convert the sugars to lactic acid… and not necessarily involving dairy products (as many may assume!)
Lactic acid is a sort of natural preservative; as a preservative, it takes on the duty of inhibiting the growth of harmful bacteria in foods that are lacto-fermented. As a bonus… it also does several other amazing things:
- It preserves and in some cases increases vitamin levels, as well as enzyme levels.
- It enhances the digestibility of the fermented food.
Their ability to increase enzyme levels make lacto-fermented foods wonderful for good gut health. Fermented foods are (in most cases) very safe to eat and incredibly easy to prepare.
So as the case with these Lacto-Fermented Lemons. They are delicious!
A wonderful way to use an abundance of lemons ~ this lacto-fermented lemon recipe is a little spicy and a little sweet!
Ingredients
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp cloves
- 2 Tbsp sea salt
- 1 tsp allspice
- 1 cinnamon sticks
- 3 lemons
- 1/2 C. lemon juice
- water
Instructions
- In the bottom of a clean, 1 quart jar, place your bay leaf. Mix the cloves, salt and allspice and set aside.
- Wash the lemons and dry thoroughly. Cut them into thin rounds, then ut each round in half.
- Place the sliced lemons in the jar - as you place in the jar, layer with the salt and spice mixture. Fill that jar to the top and leave 1/2 inch of space below the rim.
- Carefully slide your cinnamon sticks down the side of the jar - you may have to break them in half to get them to fit.
- Add your lemon juice; then fill the remainder of any jar space with filtered water - you will want to make sure you leave at least 1/2 inch of headspace. Cover the jar with an airlock lid and allow to sit at room temp (60-70 degrees) for 14 days.
- The lemons are ready when they are bubbly - at that time, remove the airlock lid and replace with a regular canning lid. Refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.
recipe adapted from Cultures for Health
