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Distributed for Reaktion Books

Lemon

A Global History

Distributed for Reaktion Books

Lemon

A Global History

You can squeeze it, zest it, slice it, juice it, pickle it, or even take a bite out of it as Sicilians do. Adding freshness and flavor to food and drinks, this versatile sour fruit, also known for resolving diverse health and household troubles, has long been considered vital to Mediterranean and European cookery and cuisine.
  
Lemon: A Global History tells the story of the remarkable adventure of the lemon, starting with its fragrant and mysterious ancestor, the citron, adored by the Greeks and Romans for its fine perfume and sacred to many of the world’s great religions. The lemon traveled with Arabs along ancient trade routes, came of age in Sicily and Italy, and sailed to the New World with Columbus. It was an exotic luxury in seventeenth-century Europe and later went on to save the lives of thousands of sailors in the British Royal Navy after being recognized as a cure for scurvy. The last century saw the lemon’s rise to commercial success in a California citrus empire as well as the discovery of new varieties. This book also includes delicious recipes for sweet and savory dishes and beverages.

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141 pages | 40 color plates, 20 halftones | 4 3/4 x 7 3/4 | © 2012

Edible

Food and Gastronomy


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Table of Contents

Introduction: A Fragrance of Lemons

1. Origins and Obsessions
2. Sicily: Arab Mediterranean
3. Exotic Treasure
4. The Lemon Cure
5. Lemonade
6. To and From the Golden State
7. At Home and In the World

Recipes
References
Select Bibliography
Websites and Associations
Acknowledgements
Photo Acknowledgements
Index

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