Memories of my maternal home are full of this lime tree….it was an experimental variety called “Rangapur Limes” that the agricultural university my mother worked at had developed….it was dark green on the outside and the flesh and pulp was orange….it was specifically developed for its juice and I haven’t come across such juicy limes ever…. Everyone who visited us would go back with a bounty….it was a high yielding tree and when laden, the branches would sweep the ground with the weight of the fruit….they were the sourest, most aromatic and greenest on the outside limes I have seen…. they were very big for limes but would easily pass for small sized oranges…and many would mistake them as such…. The house isn’t there anymore…and the lime tree was sacrificed too pretty soon….and I cringe now when I buy lemons from the market… because no matter what, nothing can match home grown produce….on a recent trip to Bangalore, I visited a family friend…they have a picture postcard home in a gated community….both uncle and aunty are avid gardners and their home with as many as 400 potted plants, rose trellises and fruit trees is testimony to their love for gardening….they grow bananas, papayas and to my delight had another variety of limes….hard as a tennis ball but so aromatic that I who am a big citrus aficionado delighted in sniffing them…..as many who have fruit and vegetable trees/patches at home will know, for a small family it is impossible to finish nature’s bounty…and I was offered a dozen limes to take back with me…..i have
savoured them this past month as they keep very well under refrigeration….so when I saw the theme for Jhiva for Ingredients….the event started by Indira and this month hosted by Coffee of the Spice Cafe was Lime and lemons, I knew I had raw material on hand…this also goes out to Bindiya, who’s theme for her monthly event “these are a few of my favourite things” this month is cakes and muffins…..
I spent yesterday evening baking and made choc rough muffins (recipe to follow) and a delightful lemon and raisin cake. this is actually a recipe for muffins, but i baked a cake out of it…increasing the baking time by a few mins…. Both were meant to be gifts and as happens in a household with too much access to chocolate, K wanted a taste of the lemon cake because it was so aromatic….i succumbed and it is almost over….the pic that is posted here is after 4 slices were demolished by us…..since the recipe is very simple with very few ingredients, I will make another tomorrow for the intended gift….for now, the aroma and flavor of the lovely limes lie infused into this fabulous cake…..
