Cooking other people's gluts - lemons

A pleasant surprise was waiting for me the other day when I returned from a trip into town. On the verandah sat a HUGE bag of lemons provided by the alpaca people up the valley - thank  you so much!  How did they know that I was in mourning for my lemon tree? How did they know that I think the kitchen is a lesser place without a full bowl of lemons? How did they know that I am sort of protesting against  buying lemons after having so many for free for years?

It sounds silly but I decided to count the lemons they had so kindly left, just to thoroughly enjoy the unexpected bounty.  There were 45 beautiful big fat lemons. Three big bowls full of lemons promptly decorated the kitchen making it a much better place.

Yesterday I started to work the glut down. First made was my favourite lemon cake. It's been somewhat munched already.

And then Lemony BBQ sauce that I will use on some chicken tonight. Its the first time I have made it. The recipe comes from a Good Weekend - the magazine that accompanies the Saturday Sydney Morning Herald. I cut it out ages ago so don't have a date for it.  It was the lemons that drew me to it! It's pretty delicious. I didn't have mustard powder so I used the same quantity of black mustard seeds.

Off now to make Lemon and Mint cordial, a recipe courtesy of Liz.

The best thing about this gift of lemons is that it proves that our climate is suitable for lemons (and other citrus). I thought  it might be too frosty in winter for a such a kitchen essential like lemons.

Got a favourite lemon recipe to share? A suggestion on how to use up the 41 lemons still to use? I am not a huge lemon curd eater - it's delicious but uses so much butter and eggs it hardens my arteries just thinking about it!  What have you been making with your lemon glut? Got a favourite lemon recipe?