top 12 recipes of 2012
happy thanksgiving!
roasted spaghetti squash with sausage
butternut squash with pecans and blue cheese
seeded maple granola
meyer lemon curd
Growing up my sister absolutely adored lemon curd. My mum would buy boxes of mini lemon curd tarts for her to take to school in her lunchbox every single day.
I wasn’t head over heels for straight up lemon curd as a child although I was always partial to a slice of lemon tart. However my grown up taste buds LOVE this stuff – as they love all things citrus – and really, what’s not to love?
If you’ve never experienced lemon curd (which I admit has a bit of a funny sounding name) you’re in for a real treat. And contrary to my expectations, it is incredibly easy to make.
What you’ll end up with is a thick, tangy-sweet, incredibly yellow, very lemony preserve perfect for spreading on toast or a good hunk of bread, or for pouring into a pie crust for a killer lemon curd tart.
I looked at a bunch of different recipes – David Lebovitz’s seems to be popular – but I really liked Nigel Slater‘s. Since Meyer lemons tend to be much sweeter than conventional lemons I reduced the amount of sugar here but it’s still wonderfully sweet – so much so that I can’t seem to stop taking giant finger-swipes from the jar. Addictive to say the least.
Meyer Lemon Curd
from Nigel Slater via The Guardian
Ingredients
- zest and juice of 4 unwaxed Meyer lemons (if using regular lemons, increase the sugar to 200g)
- 160g sugar
- 100g butter, cut into cubes
- 3 eggs and 1 egg yolk, mixed gently with a fork
Directions
- Set a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water, being careful that the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water. Place the lemon zest and juice, sugar and butter into the heatproof bowl. Stir with a whisk from time to time until the butter has melted.
- Stir the eggs and egg yolk into the lemon mixture. Let the curd cook, stirring regularly, for about 10 minutes, until it is thick and custard-like. It should feel heavy on the whisk.
- Remove from the heat and stir occasionally as it cools. Pour into very clean jam jars (mason jars) and seal. It will keep for a couple of weeks in the refrigerator. Makes 2 small jam jars.
Category: recipe | Tags: breakfast, lemon love, preserves, sweet treats 14 comments »
January 17th, 2012 at 7:55 am
Mouthgasm. Love Nigel Slater…he was new to me until arriving on this side of the pond. Lovely recipe, must give it a go.
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Angharad Reply:
January 17th, 2012 at 8:50 pm
You must, you must! It’s ridiculously easy. I never would’ve imagined I could whip up my own lemon curd in a matter of moments. Loving your instagram photos of farm life recently by the way. Nice way for me to live vicariously :)
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January 17th, 2012 at 7:57 am
Yum yum! We made a lemon meringue pie a few months back that was one of the best desserts we ever made! We used maple syrup in place of sugar (the recipe was from Nourishing Traditions) and it was insanely good lemon curd – totally recommended variant! (Although it does, of course, cost a b*** fortune to sweeten an entire cake with maple syrup…)
And yes – RIGHT by Borough Market. Hot dogs galore! :) And (obv) fellow lemon fanatic.
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Angharad Reply:
January 17th, 2012 at 8:51 pm
Woah, that does sound like an expensive undertaking! But wow, good, I bet. I plan to use the second jar of this (the one I’m not just eating by the spoonful, ahem) in a lemon curd tart. Cos, you know, if something’s delicious add a pie crust and you’ve got yourself a winner.
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January 17th, 2012 at 8:06 am
Sweet! I was hoping you’d post this recipe after you posted the picture. I’ll have to try this. I’ve never had lemon curd before. Actually, I was never really even sure what it was. Definitely looks pretty.
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January 17th, 2012 at 10:55 am
Wow, the color of that curd is really gorgeous…I would like some on a scone right now!
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January 17th, 2012 at 1:03 pm
I love lemon curd. I love all things lemon. I would just eat this by the jarful.
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January 18th, 2012 at 8:47 am
LOVE the meyer lemon theme. Divine.
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January 18th, 2012 at 10:14 am
[...] wheat shortbread scones, classic lemon tart, crispy potato stacks, Meyer lemon curd, rhubarb ketchup, and celery root latkes. » Meyer Lemon Curd and Recipe Roundup Tags: [...]
January 18th, 2012 at 2:54 pm
Lemon curd is such a taste of sunshine isn’t it? It’s that perfect combination of tart and sweet, I know that I certainly can’t resist eating it by the spoonful!
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January 21st, 2012 at 9:42 pm
I always end up making Dorie Greenspan’s recipe for lemon cream–but you don’t get that sunny yellow color from it like you do with curd. This is so lovely!
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January 23rd, 2012 at 1:53 pm
[...] feel like I’m right there even if I’m on the other side of the country). All over the bloody blogosphere. All over the little food television I actually watch. I finally threw in the towel when I clicked [...]
January 17th, 2013 at 5:51 am
Thanks for sharing this. I have been making your lemon drenched lemon cake and it is a big hit at our gatherings with mates, even getting requests for it!! Had some lemons leftover so I decided to give the lemon curd a whirl, will serve it with the sponge cake I whipped up following your receipe :)
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Angharad Reply:
January 17th, 2013 at 5:01 pm
Thanks so much for sharing this! I’m so glad you love that cake as much as I do…I’m obsessed with it and glad your friends like it too! Now you have me craving lemon curd… :)
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