How to add lemons to your diet  

Lemons are wonderful citrus fruits with a myriad of health benefits. As such, we can all benefit from adding them to our diets. Here are some suggestions for using more lemons in the kitchen to take nutritional advantage of them.

Beverages

One simple way to get some of the health benefits from lemons is to use the lemon juice in beverages. For instance, you can make a glass of fresh lemonade by mixing the juice of half a lemon with sugar or other sweetener, to taste. It's that simple. You can also add lemon juice to other beverages like iced tea or limeade for some extra flavor and nutrition. Drinking water flavored with lemon juice is another way to get some of the health benefits of lemons.

Side Dishes

You might not think of lemons as being useful for side dishes, but you can use the juice from lemons to add flavor and nutrition to your garden salads. You can also mix lemon juice with vinegar, oil and sugar for a sweet and tangy salad dressing. If you need some buttermilk to make biscuits or muffins, and you don't have any buttermilk on hand, you can make a suitable substitute by adding 1 tablespoon of lemon juice to one cup of whole milk. Let it ferment for about 10 minutes, then use it like buttermilk.

Entrees

Lemons and lemon juice can be used to cook entrees. A very tasty pasta dish can be made by using both lemon juice and lemon zest, along with olive oil, parmesan cheese and garlic for a creamy sauce that is poured over pasta and sprinkled with fresh parsley. Adding lemon juice to a marinade will not only add a bit of flavor and nutrition to the meat, the acid from the juice will act as a tenderizer by breaking down the meat's connective tissues.

Desserts

Lemon zest, the outer part of the lemon's rind that has been grated, can be added to cookies for both a flavor and nutritional boost. Use fresh lemon juice the next time a dessert recipe calls for lemon juice. Lemon curd, a thick, velvety cream, is made with eggs, sugar, fresh lemon juice, freshly-grated lemon zest and unsalted butter. The fresh lemon curd can be used for making pies, tarts and cakes, giving each of these desserts a healthier aspect.