With so many of us heeding orders to stay at home in these times, a lot of us are rediscovering — or learning for the first time about — kitchen basics. We’re cooking and baking in greater numbers now than we have in decades. And not without reason.

We all have to eat.

I’m going to start to share daily cooking and baking posts, along with handy kitchen tips. Whether you’re new to the kitchen, or feel a bit rusty when it comes to a particular skill or technique, I hope to help with these posts. And if you’re looking for any particular information or recipe, contact me and I’ll do my best to help you out, or point you to the right resource. You can reach me at: noelle@noellecarterfood.com.

When it comes to versatile ingredients in the kitchen, lemons are a favorite of mine. Not only do they work well as a flavoring in both sweet and savory recipes, their acidity actually helps to season dishes, much like vinegars and other acids.

But did you know they’re also a natural cleanser?

That same acidity packs a little elbow grease in a variety of ways around the kitchen. Here are just a few examples:

Clean and deodorize cutting boards: Run a cut lemon over cutting boards to remove heavy odors after chopping. That garlic you just finished dicing for a dish? The lemon will remove the smell so the board is fresh and ready for other uses.
Remove mineral deposits and other build-ups: Soak scum, mineral deposits and greasy build-ups with lemon juice. The acidity in the juice will help to soften the build-up for easy removal.
Deodorize garbage disposals: Toss your lemon peels and trimmings (or other citrus, such as orange or grapefruit) in the desposal before running. The odor will go from funky to fresh and bright in no time.
Clean plates. In culinary school, one of the first tricks we learned was to wipe our serving plates down with acidulated water (lemon juice squeezed into a cup of water). The acidulated water removes fingerprints and dirt effortlessly.
Copper cleaner: Combine lemon juice and salt to make a paste. Rub the paste into your copper using a soft cloth to clean, then rinse off with water before polishing.
Oven cleaner: Squeeze the juice of a few lemons into an oven-proof bowl or baking dish, along with the squeezed lemons. Add some water and place the bowl in the oven at 250-degrees for an hour or so to loosen dirt. For tougher dirt and grime, make a paste using lemon juice and baking soda and scrub to clean difficult areas.

These are just a few of the many tips and uses I’ve heard over the years, and you can find many more doing a simple internet search. Have a favorite use for lemon? Share it with me and other readers below; we can always use another tip!

And if all that talk about lemons made you hungry, check out my recipe for lemon bars below. Enjoy!

LEMON BARS

Total time: 1 hour, 10 minutes, plus cooling times. Serves 12 to 16

CRUST

2 1/2 cups (10.6 ounces) all-purpose flour
3/4 cup (3 ounces) powdered sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 13-inch by 9-inch baking dish with nonstick spray and line the bottom with parchment. Spray the parchment and set aside.
In the bowl of a food processor, pulse together the flour and powdered sugar to combine. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles a coarse meal. Add the mixture to the prepared dish and press the dough evenly over the bottom of the dish. Bake until the crust is set and lightly golden, about 20 minutes. Transfer the dish to a rack, and cool completely.

LEMON BARS

8 large eggs
2 3/4 cups (19.25 ounces) granulated sugar
1 cup lemon juice (from 6 to 8 large lemons)
2 tablespoons finely-grated lemon zest (from about 2 lemons)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2/3 cup (2.8 ounces) all-purpose flour
Prepared crust
Powdered sugar, for garnish

Heat the oven to 350 degrees.
In a large bowl, beat the eggs, then add the sugar and whisk until blended. Whisk in the lemon juice and zest, then whisk in the baking powder and flour. Pour the mixture over the cooled crust.
Bake until the custard is set (it should barely jiggle when the dish is shaken) and lightly golden, about 40 minutes. Transfer the dish to a rack and cool completely. Dust the top with powdered sugar and cut into bars before serving.

Note: From Noelle Carter