Lemon Extract

Making lemon extract at home is more flavorful and much cheaper. Plus, it’s nearly free! The recipe is simple. First take organic lemons. Wash them twice being sure to rinse them really well. Pat dry.

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Peel the skins off the lemons with a potato peeler. Be sure not to dig deep. You do not want the white portion of the lemon, just the skin. Pour vodka or gin over your lemon peels. I use vodka. The cheaper the better. We make ours in a quart jar because we use it so much. It’s easiest to peel your lemons as you use them and keep filling the jar as time passes.   Top with a lid and store the jar in a dark cabinet. Every once in a while shake the jar or turn it over and back. It’s best to do this every day but in reality mine get shaken roughly every few weeks. The longer you let it brew the better the flavor. Some folks like it after a month, I let mine go at least 6 months. 

The most economical lemon extract out there: [AMAZONPRODUCTS asin=”B00A380YY6″]

Cost of home made: $7 a quart

Lemon extract is often paired with yellow food coloring in recipes. Yellow food coloring is a product associated with behavioral problems in children. In fact the Center for Science in the Public Interest is trying to get the FDA to ban Yellow No. 5. (http://www.npr.org/2011/03/30/134962888/fda-probes-link-between-food-dyes-kids-behavior)

Europe revisited their stipulations on food colours, reevaluating their dangers. They found, “Exposure to synthetic colours or a sodium benzoate preservative (or both) in the diet result in increased hyperactivity.”  (http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/efsajournal/pub/660.htm)