Saturday, January 16, 2010

Lemon Curd

You could use lime juice as well, with equally delicious results.
I’ve tried this with salted butter; it doesn’t turn out as well as with unsalted.

I love lemon zest in recipes, since it would get stuck in the strainer when I pass the curd through, I only add half during the cooking process, strain as directed then stir in the remaining zest while the curd is cooling, making sure my beloved zest is available with every bite.  The trick is to cook it to just before it becomes the consistnecy of pudding: not too thin, not too thick, this took about 10 minutes on my mid-priced electric range.

½ c. unsalted butter
½ c. fresh lemon juice
Pinch salt
¾ c. sugar
3 Tbsp. finely grated lemon zest  (I usually add more, but this is what the recipe calls for)
6 large egg yolks

1. Melt butter in a medium saucepan over med-low heat. Remove the pan and whisk in the sugar, lemon juice, zest and salt. Temper in the egg yolks by first ladling a small amount of the hot liquid into the egg yolks and mixing well. Whisk the egg yolk mixture into the sugar mixture until smooth. Cook, whisking constantly until it thickens and leaves a path on the back of a wooden spoon when you drag your finger through it. DO NOT BOIL. Immediately, pour curd through a strainer into a bowl. Let cool to room temperature, whisking occasionally.
2. Refrigerate, covered with plastic wrap placed directly on top of the curd (to keep it from forming a skin) until ready to serve. Keeps for a month in the fridge and for about 3 months in the freezer.

I've also made mini fruit pizza's:  A rolled sugar cookie, a layer of sweetened cream cheese, a slathering of curd (lime or lemon) and 3 raspberries -- so yummy.

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