Montse Guillén’s Lemon Delights

With this recipe, we would like to remember Montse Guillén, who passed away a year ago and left us with many wonderful culinary memories. A cook, researcher and cultural agitator, Montse understood cooking as a space for experimentation, encounters and shared creativity.

Together with Antoni Miralda, she formed one of the most singular collaborations between art and gastronomy of recent decades. They were partners in life and creation, united by curiosity, visuality and a deeply free approach to food. From projects such as International Tapas Bar & Restaurant in New York to the many initiatives developed through FoodCultura, they created their own language where food, ritual, humour and art coexisted naturally. This recipe was recently prepared again during the celebration of Li Mona, conceived by Miralda as an intimate tribute, surrounded by friends, to remember his companion and great love.

The recipe was born much earlier, in 1978, in the family kitchen of Can Borrell in Meranges, a small village in La Cerdanya, where Montse helped her parents in the family restaurant. One day they ran out of desserts, and she improvised a simple, fresh and quick preparation with only a few ingredients. It was such a success that she decided to call it Lemon Delights.

During the Li Mona celebration, the dessert was served in lemons from Todolí Citrus Fundació, also recalling the close relationship between Montse, Miralda and Vicent Todolí, and their exchanges around citrus marmalades and varieties.

Ingredients

* 1 small tin of condensed milk

* 3 plain yoghurts

* Juice of 3 lemons

* Lemon zest

* 3 lemons for serving

Method

In a bowl, mix the condensed milk with the plain yoghurts. Add the lemon juice and zest, stirring until smooth and creamy.

Cut the lemons in half and carefully hollow them out. Fill them with the mixture and refrigerate until the cream becomes firm and refreshing.

Finish and presentation

Serve in the lemon halves. A simple and luminous recipe that still preserves Montse Guillén’s creative spirit.

©Photography Miralda