Lemon Curd

What’s fruity and tangy but creamy and custard-like?  A curd! I'm showing you lemon curd here, but you can make a curd of any citrus fruit.

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Lemon Curd (Any Citrus Curd)

Planning

  • Prep Time:

    15 minutes

  • Bake/Cook Time:

    15 minutes

  • Chill/Set Time:

    1 hour + 3 hours

  • Servings:

    Makes 1 Pint: Enough for 1 batch of macarons or two cake layers.

Preparation

  • Materials

    Citrus juicer (or just squeeze by hand)
    Blender
    Stainless steel or copper mesh Sieve
    Zester
    Double Boiler with steamer and stainless steel mixing bowl or saucepan.
    Extra mixing bowls
    Spatula
    Wooden Spoon
    Hand Whisk
    Cutting board & Knife
    Prep bowl for the butter.
    Prep bowl for the hot puree mixture

  • Prep

    Set eggs out to bring to room temp.
    Separate the eggs
    Whip the egg yolks in a bowl with a pinch of sea salt
    Chill the butter in the freezer for 30 minutes.
    Slice butter into very small cubes while very cold
    Put the bowl of cubed butter in the refrigerator until you need it.
    Squeeze lemon (or other citrus) juice and zest the rinds.
    Boil water in a pot on the stove.
    If using berries, clean them then puree them in a blender and strain through a fine wire mesh strainer.

  • Oven/Stove

    Curd is cooked on the stovetop in a double boiler. If you don't have a double boiler you can use a large bain marie or a saucepot over a larger pot of boiling water.

  • Shopping List

    Lemons - 4 large
    Granulated Sugar
    Eggs, 180g - 6 large
    Butter, unsalted (If salted, just don't add salt)

Ingredients & Steps

  • Ingredients

    Lemon Juice 125 g (½  cup+ = 4 large lemons)
    Lemon Zest 1 tbsp (= 4 large lemons)
    Granulated Sugar 200g (1 cup) 
    Eggs, 180g (6 large yolks)
    Butter, unsalted, cold, small diced 113g ( 8 tbsp or 1  stick)

    NOTE: If using Orange Juice to make an orange curd, add 2 tbsp lemon juice.

  • Steps

    STEP 1: Boil water in a double boiler.

    STEP 2: Cream the eggs and sugar In a mixer and add zest and juice. Whisk until the eggs are pale color, light and fluffy with volume. Put the mixing bowl in the double boiler and continue whisking by hand until thick.

    STEP 3: Whisk in butter little by little until it is all incorporated and mixed in well. Let each few pieces of butter melt before adding more until all is incorporated and continue whisking over heat until the curd is thick enough to coat the back of a wood spoon.

    STEP 4: Remove from heat and strain the curd with a medium-coarse stainless steel strainer into a bowl.

    STEP 5: Cover with plastic wrap (touching the surface). Set aside to cool to room temperature (about 1 hour) then refrigerate for at least 3 hours.

Notes

FLAVORING
No additional flavoring is needed. Curd is a flavor-packed powerhouse.

COLORING
The curd takes on the color of the fruit juice, so no coloring is needed.

SERVING
If you are going to use it right away, the curd needs to be chilled and let set a little before you pipe it into a dessert.

PAIRING
Use as a filling or a dollop on a pancake or cupcake. Curd is an amazing filling for macarons and lemon pound cake. Use it for any dessert where you want a strong lemony flavor. Berry curds are excellent for strawberry shortcake, blintzes and crepes. They can also be folded into whipped cream, meringue or buttercreams for a uniquely tangy flavor.

STORING
Pour the curd into a sealable jar refrigerate. It can keep 1-2 weeks.
Frozen curd keeps 1-3 months and is thawed in the refrigerator overnight.
Egg whites can also be stored in the fridge for up to two days or frozen for up to three months.
I actually keep my leftover curd in the piping bag with a piping bag closure on each end. It keeps just fine in the fridge as I use the curd throughout the week.

COOKWARE
You don’t want to cook with acid like lemon juice in anything that will react with it. That will give you a poor outcome with a not so good taste. Certain metals will react with certain foods and change the taste and possibly the final appearance.

You can use stainless steel, copper, enameled, or pyrex tempered glass. Do not  use aluminum or cast iron.  Stainless steel and copper are non-reactive metals. Aluminum and cast iron are reactive metals.

UTENSILS
It is best to use a red or dark colored spatula to work the blackberries in the sieve. Anything white or light colored the blackberries will stain. Alternatively I recommend a wooden spoon or stainless steel soup or serving spoon.

THICKER CURD
For thicker  curd, use 1 whole egg in place of  2 of the egg yolks.  Keep the rest of the recipe and instructions the same.

LEMON JUICE
Fresh lemon juice is always so much better than bottled and zest is beyond compare to extracts.

BUTTER
You can use salted butter instead of unsalted butter. Simply omit 1/8 teaspoon salt in the recipe.

DOUBLE BOILER OR BAIN MARIE
If you do not own a double boiler, you can simply place a small heatproof glass or steel mixing bowl over a saucepan of simmering water.

A bain marie is a bowl with a handle and lips to hold it on the pot. They are inexpensive and well worth having. Just make sure the bain marie is large enough to hold the volume of mixture you are cooking.

VARIATIONS
Fold whipped cream or pastry cream into the curd.

Mango Curd
Ingredients: 1C Mango Puree (1 large mango)1 Tbsp Lemon Juice (4 tsp)Zest of 1/2 a lemon1  cup caster (superfine) sugar1 large whole egg4 large egg yolkss113g butter
Method: Peel, puree and strain the mango. Mix the mango puree with the  sugar, lemon juice, eggs and cook in the double boiler, then strain and so on, just like the berry curd recipe.

Passion Fruit Curd
Ingredients: 1 cup passionfruit puree1 tbsp Lemon Juice (4 tsp)Zest of 1/2 a lemon1  cup caster (superfine) sugar1 large whole egg4 large egg yolks113g butter
Method: Peel, puree and strain the passion fruit. Mix the passion fruit puree with the  sugar, lemon juice, eggs and cook in the double boiler, then strain and so on, just like the berry curd recipe.

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