Today is the first full day of spring. The days are getting longer, the birds are getting chirpier and the everyday is getting a little more colourful thanks to the daffs, the tulips and the crocuses.
And something else that always feels very springy to me are lemons, especially when they are made into lemon curd, which is quite the charming little kitchen basic to have in your back pocket. Maybe not quite as useful as onions or stock but what it lacks in practicality it more than makes up for in cheer and sass. It’s simple to make and elegant to use in a myriad of dessertish ways.
Swipe it on toast, throw it on ice cream, swirl it into freshly whipped cream for a nice bright zing or put it in a tart shell and toss on some fruit. That bright sunny yellow cannot fail to bring a smile to your face even on the most stubborn of grey spring days.
I like to cream my butter and sugar first before adding the eggs and juice. What does this do? It prevents the eggs from coagulating as you heat them up which has a tendency to give you strands of egg white in your nice creamy lemon curd. Not very pleasant at all. Having said that, if for whatever reason this happens, don’t despair, simply push it all through a sieve. It’ll have your curd back to bright and creamy in an instant. This method, however, should prevent you from having to do that.
Lemon Curd
- 1 stick of unsalted butter (115g), softened
- 1 C. (200g) sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 egg yolks
- 3/4 C. (175ml) lemon juice
- zest of 1 lemon
- pinch of salt
-
- Beat the sugar and butter until creamy.
- Add eggs one at a time and then each yolk.
- Beat 1 minute.
- Mix in the lemon juice.
- Cook over low heat, using a double boiler, until the mixture becomes smooth.
- Increase the heat just a touch, to a lowish medium and cook, stirring continuously until the curd thickens, about 10-15 minutes. Be patient!
- Remove from the heat, add the zest and cool.
As you can see in the photo above the curd should be thick enough to nicely coat the back of a spoon. If you can swipe a finger through and get a nice clear line, you’re good to go. It will firm up further once it cools.
A double boiler simply means putting the curd in a bowl and nesting it on top of a saucepan with a few inches of water in the bottom which you bring to a boil. I use the bowl from my kitchen aid which rests nicely on my largest saucepan. The indirect heat cooks the curd more gently so you don’t end up with scrambled eggs.
