Only by leafing through the first pages of the book “Il Paese dei limoni”, by Manuela Soressi, journalist specializing in food & travel and collaborator of Sale & Pepe and salepepe.it, will you realize the vast world that lies behind a lemon. Because, let's face it, we all know lemon but we don't know anything about it, we take it for granted, yet it is such a precious citrus fruit! Precisely for this reason the journalist has decided to let us discover it, to tell us about it and to make us appreciate it.
Lemon and Italy
Here, on this topic we could be writing pages and pages of history, curiosities and anecdotes related to lemon but, we recommend that you buy "The village of lemons", a book so intense that you can almost perceive the scent of citrus when you read it. Wonderful. To intrigue you even more we want to tell you some anecdotes.
But you know that in Italy there are 7 types of lemons with the IGP brand and hundreds of other varieties? Yes, thanks to lemons from Sorrento, Amalfi, Femminello del Gargano, Rocca Imperiale, Syracuse, Interdonato di Messina and Etna we hold a European and world record.
In Italy there are historic lemon houses and visitable on Lake Garda, and so far nothing strange. The particularity? They are the northernmost lemon crops in the world, a real peculiarity given that this plant prefers very hot and dry climates.
In addition, lemon is the only fresh fruit which matures in Italy 12 months a year! Lemon plants give us up to 5 harvests during the year and, on the plants, we can simultaneously admire the development of the fruit, flower and bud … A spectacle of nature!
A citrus fruit strongly linked to Italy, from history to cooking. Think limoncello or a frothy lemon delight!
But how many lemons are consumed in Italy? On average, it is estimated that in Italy they are consumed 5 kilos of lemons each year. But are we sure we are consuming them correctly? Not entirely. Often, in the kitchen only the juice and pulp are consumed, discarding the peel and albedo (the white skin), two parts rich in beneficial properties. Each part of the lemon is rich in properties from which we can benefit from it; not surprisingly, lemon is also defined as a "superfood": if eaten whole in slices we can enjoy the healthy synergy of all its components such as vitamin C, flavonoids, antioxidants, antivirals and anti-inflammatories.
Lemons have seasons
Every lemon that we find on the market is a product fresh and seasonal, as mentioned above, lemons have the distinction of being the only fresh fruit 12 months a year. The interesting aspect, or rather, one of the many interesting aspects of lemons, is that changes according to the harvest season. For example, from season to season the flavor and acidity change, the shape (it can be more or less round or elongated), the yield, that is, the proportion between juice and pulp, the scent that can be may or less intense, the peel can be very thin or very thick and the weight varies from 70-80 grams up to over 100 grams.
In “Il Paese dei limoni” written by Manuela Soressi with Ramona Pizzano for the choice of images and recipes, you will find lots of other useful information on lemons. We will talk about the circular economy of lemons, the green era of lemons and, another interesting aspect, there will be many sweet and savory recipes prepared with lemons! What are you waiting for? Run to buy it, you can find it in the bookshop from today!
October 2021
Giulia Ferrari
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