According to the signs in the stores, these are limones or lemons. Nope. They're little bitty limes. And they taste like limes. So what's a fella to do if he craves a cold glass of lemonade, a slice of lemon meringue pie, or just a squeeze on a big ol' slab of salmon? The answer, so far, is a glass of limeade, a slice of lime pie, or lime juice on the fish.
There are tons and tons of these small limes in the market for pennies. They are small, but they are soft (when ripe) and full of juice. I've measured and a small limone will yield well over a teaspoon of juice and they can be squeezed by hand. However, the do have some big seeds so the squeezing is best done over a strainer. The limones above are just about an inch in diameter. The 10 Peso coin (I don't have a quarter!!) is about an inch also.
The markets also sell a large lime (about the size of a small lemon) for triple the price per kilo. [Most everything is priced by the kilo here = 2.2 lbs.] They don't have triple the juice so the only reason to buy them would be for an easier time zesting. They do tend to be greener and less prone to blemishes.
I have been asking about and a cousin (one of my wife's >150 cousins) said she has seen a couple of lemon trees at the base of a great uncle's rancho out in the country. She said there are always lots of big yellow fruit on the trees. No wonder, no one uses them!
Oh, I did find a "kinda" substitute right in my own back yard. We have an old orange tree that is full of fruit. The bad news is that the tree is ornamental. The good news is the sour juice (what little there is -- mostly seeds and skin) tastes quite a bit like lemon juice! I hope it's safe for digest. I have already used it in a pie and over fish!
Of course the plentiful little green limones are great in guacamole and to hold the salt on the edge of a margarita glass!
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