Never be dismissive of the humble lemon. Its fragrant oils are only the beginning. Brush your fingernail across its nubbly, deep yellow skin and take in the intoxicating aromas. Instantly, seafood and salads come to mind, maybe even a cheeky cocktail or two.

While they do last while in the fridge, I get sad when I leave them there too long and find them lost and withered. So, I’m taking advantage of this bounty.

First, give them a good soak in my 3% hydrogen peroxide (diluted 1000ml:15ml) for 20 minutes and then a decent rinse. Remove the zest with a regular vegetable peeler, aiming to get only the upper yellow layer and not the bitter white pith below.

A small amount of zest was infused into olive oil over a low heat for 10 minutes, then turned off and allowed to cool. After removing the zest, store the oil in the fridge and use it with salads, drizzle over grilled vegetables, fish etc.

Lay the pieces of zest out onto a cake rack or other to dry in the sun if you can. Depending on your situation, the zest may not get fully dry (ie crispy). To finish the process, place the zest into a turned-off but still-warm oven. After this, blitz it all in a spice mill and make sure you store this in an airtight jar.

Extract the juice however you fancy but I used my old-school metal hand juicer and froze most of it in ice cube trays for later use.

And how to use it? Wherever you feel inclined. Mixed with salt for seasoning all manner of delights. Blend with sugar and add to biscuit dough, muffin mix or garnish your cocktails.