We planted a little lemon tree two years ago at the backyard. It produced two lemons last year. We were not expecting many this year either since it’s still in its juvenile stage, not fully grown. It’s only less than 2 meters high. The tree trunk is so skinny and fragile. The branches are so willowy. At some stage, I thought it might not bare any fruits this year at all. How wrong I was! All of a sudden, it started blooming. So many flowers. Then, so many lemons. We found lemons on every single branch. The lemons were big and heavy that I started to worry the branches might break. 

At the end, it’s all good. After we gave some away to our friends and neighbors, we still have more than we can handle. It’s quite hard to keep the fruits fresh for a long time. So I decided to make some preserved lemons. We can use it later for cooking. The preserved lemons can be found in many Moroccan recipes. It will be handy to have some in the kitchen.

INGREDIENTS

• 6-8 lemons
• 6-8 tablespoon rock salt
• 2-3 extra lemons for lemon juice
• Black peppercorns (optional)
• bay leaves (optional)
• dry rosemary (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Wash and dry 1 or 2 glass jar (depends on how big the jar you have)
2. Wash the lemons and pat dry with paper towel. Cut the lemons into quarters from the top to almost the base. 
3. Insert 1 tablespoon rock salt in each lemon and close it up. Place the lemons in the jar until the jar is tightly packed.
4. If you have multiple layers, sprinkle 1 tablespoon rock salt between each layer.
5. Add the bay leaves, dry rosemary and black peppercorns in each jar. Pour the lemon juice (fresh squeezed) into the jar until the lemons are covered.
6. Seal the jar and leave it in a cool and dark place for at least 4 weeks.
7. Gently shake the jar everyday for the first week to make sure the rock salt is dissolved.
8. The preserved lemon will last about 6 month. However, you need to store it in the refrigerator once you open the jar.