When Tiffany and I made Lemon Pull-Apart Bread recently, we used a lot of lemon zest but just a little bit of lemon juice. She asked me if I was going to make lemonade with all the leftover juice (which is a great idea), but I love to keep lemon juice in the freezer so it’s easy to use in recipes without having to buy lemons and juice them each time.
If you freeze the juice in ice cube trays, it’s already measured for you and ready to use in recipes. Each cube equals 1 tablespoon of juice. The lemon zest freezes well too, so be sure and remove the zest before you juice the lemons.
I use the electric juicer that my husband bought years and years ago. You get a lot more juice than using a reamer or press, but you do need to strain the juice to remove the seeds and pulp.
The frozen lemon juice tastes so much better than bottled juice, and it’s just as convenient and easy to use.
It doesn’t take long for a cube of lemon juice to thaw at room temperature, or zap it in the microwave for a few seconds. You can also add the frozen lemon juice to most sauces without thawing it first.
We love lemon desserts at our house. Here’s just a few that I’ve shared:
Lemon Meringue Tarts
Mini Lemon Cream Cheese Pies
Meyer Lemon Cheesecake
Lemon Pull-Apart Bread
Baked Lemon Donuts
Lemon Zucchini Bread
Or maybe you’d prefer a lemon cookie to brighten up your day.
Lemon Bar Cookie Cups
Lemon Glazed Christmas Wreath Cookies
Over The Top Lemon Drop Candy Cookies
Start or end your day with a little sunshine:
Cornmeal Lemon Ricotta Waffles
Lemon Ricotta Pancakes
Linguine in Lemon Cream Sauce
Quick and Easy Chicken Piccata
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I love to bake, especially cookies, cakes, and pies. I’ll post my adventures in the kitchen, my favorite new recipes, as well as our family favorites.
A great tip!
Cheers,
Rosa
never ever thought to freeze my leftover lemon juice but you bet that is the first thing i am going to do next time I have a handful of leftover lemons! This is just one of those kitchen tips that is GENIUS!
Well good heavens, why have I never thought of this?!
Does freezing lemon rind work well, too? Does it dry out too much to be flavorful?
Freezing the lemon rind does not dry it out. It actually makes it more moist, so it works well in batters and sauces. I freeze it in a flat layer in a Ziploc because it tends to clump together. Thanks for the great question.
I find when I print your recipes on the print friendly page it not only prints the recipe but all sorts of other things. What am I doing wrong, I only want the recipe. Thanks so much.
Mary L
If you can tell me what page you were trying to print, I’d be happy to trouble shoot the problem for you. Thanks!
As a citrus fanatic I love this idea! Lemon juice as needed, a splendid addition to any well stocked freezer!
Thanks for the great tip, Barbara! You just reminded me how much better I could be about using more of the ingredients in my kitchen!
SUCH a great idea! i am doing that next time!
That’s such a good idea!!! I’ve never thought of freezing lemon juice so I don’t need to rush out and buy lemons everytime I want to make a lemon dessert ~ VERY SMART!!!
Thanks for the idea!!!!
A great idea, Barbara. The pull apart bread looks awesome!
Great tip as usual Barbara!
I sometimes wish I lived in the south and could have my own lemon tree! I go through about 8 lemons a week and love them. I never thought to freeze the juice. I usually just make something using it when I have a bit left over. This is a great idea. I am thinking I could use those cubes in my iced tea or lemonade too. Thank you.
Great tip, especially since Meyer lemons are in season but will be going away soon
*sob.
I had no idea you could freeze lemon juice!
Great tip Barbara…and yes it is nice to have “fresh” lemon juice available year round.
Have a wonderful week!
A whole host of lemon recipes and a wonderful tip! I need to remember to buy some ice cube trays so that I can freeze my juice. I normally use ziploc bags, but the cubes would be much easier (and cleaner too).
Great idea, Barbara! I love lemon too and just made two lemon recipes to post.
What a great idea! I use lemon a lot in my cooking…
Mu, I’ve got this bread on the list to make! I cannot wait to make it!
xxx
P.S. Can I ask a silly question mum but did you do another version of this? Or did I see that on another blog? xxx
I did make a pumpkin fan tail version http://www.barbarabakes.com/2012/11/pumpkin-fantail-cinnamon-rolls-with-maple-cream-cheese-icing/
Just the information I was looking for. I just bought a big bag of lemons at Costco and was wondering what I was going to do with all of them. Any extras will become lemon juice cubes! Thanks, Barbara.
I think I use ice cube trays for things like this more than I do real ice! I love freezing things like chicken stock in those small cubes, too.
I hadn’t thought about freezing the zest, though. Do you put that in trays or just in a ziplock bag or something?
Hi Jessi – I need to remember to freeze chicken stock. That’s a great idea. I just freeze the zest in a ziplock bag and pull out a pinch or two when I need it.