lemon

by Dawn Promislow

I have journeyed through Luscious Lemon Desserts
which has

lemon cake
lemon angel food cake with lemon glaze
ultimate lemon pound cake
lemon meringue ice-cream cake
easy lemon-almond cake
Victorian lemon-coriander seed cake
mom’s lemon meringue pie
sweet and creamy lemon chess pie
ethereal lemon angel pie
tangy lemon meringue tart
lemon curd and strawberry sunburst tart
lemon chiffon tart
the perfect lemon tart
chocolate ganache tart with lemon
triple-lemon cheesecake
lemon panna cotta
the ultimate lemon mousse
lemon-caramel pots de crème
lemon crème brûlee
lemon-fennel crème caramel
lemon marscarpone clementine gratins
chilled lemon soufflé
lemony rice pudding
classic lemon crêpes
butter lemon shortbread

and many other items which I can’t for space list here

on this train

and from the window I have seen all the sweet-tangs, folded and creamed and
zested and chilled, nestled, and sugar-dusted, bright-canaried. (I’ve heard the
canaries’ yellow sound too.) And I have spent many hours reading and leafing
through the landscape, which is soft and hilled, and enfolding the recipes, passing,
and the ingredients, which are unsalted butter and heavy (whipping) cream, and
confectioners’ sugar and vanilla extract, pure, and gelatin and whole unblanched
almonds, and white-blanched ones, silvered, and chocolate, glossy ganached, and
snow-flakings, and clementines. And I have seen the faery folded chiffon, under a
snowfalling, on the high heights of hills, and shortbreads beaded, biscotti, and
loaves, on the long yellow plains, maized, I amazed, and lemonéd, lingering, and I
have examined and gazed on the pictures and plains which are yellow and white
and lemony and white-dust powdered, buttermilked

and then I got tired of travelling all those yellow ways and white and I thought (of
course) I might make some of those thangs

and taste all of them
one every day

when it’s night-and-black truffled
and velveted
and still and quiet
after all that journeying

and the tang-and-white glazes
burst sharp
as stars

 

Dawn Promislow has been shortlisted for the 2015 Berfrois Poetry Prize.

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About the Author:

Dawn Promislow is a South African-born, Toronto-based writer. Her debut short story collection Jewels and Other Stories (TSAR Publications, 2010) was long-listed for the Frank O’Connor International Short Story Award 2011 and was named one of the 8 best fiction debuts of 2011 by the The Globe and Mail (Canada).