Lemon Curd for Scottish Shortbread
by Elinor Klivans
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Seeing a jar of lovely yellow lemon curd in the refrigerator will brighten anyone's day. Serve over Thick Scottish Shortbread, or use as a spread for toast or English muffins, or a filling for cakes and tartlets.Yields about 2 cups.
3 oz. (6 Tbs.) unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
2/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tsp. grated lemon zest
In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer, about 2 min. Slowly add the eggs and yolks. Beat for 1 min. Mix in the lemon juice. The mixture will look curdled, but it will smooth out as it cooks.
In a medium, heavy-based saucepan, cook the mixture over low heat until it looks smooth. (The curdled appearance disappears as the butter in the mixture melts.) Increase the heat to medium and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens, about 15 min. It should leave a path on the back of a spoon and will read 170°F on a thermometer. Don't let the mixture boil.
Remove the curd from the heat; stir in the lemon zest. Transfer the curd to a bowl. Press plastic wrap on the surface of the lemon curd to keep a skin from forming and chill the curd in the refrigerator. The curd will thicken further as it cools. Covered tightly, it will keep in the refrigerator for a week and in the freezer for 2 months.
Variations
For lime curd, substitute fresh lime juice and zest for lemon.
photo: Rita Maas
From Fine Cooking 26, pp. 52-54
April 1, 1998
user reviews
by Nightingale,
5/1/2008I was sceptical that a) a novice lemon curd apprentice, like myself, could pull this off, and b)that it would be as good, in the end, as what I have had previously... But I was wrong on both cynical accounts! First of all, this recip is DIVINELY simple, tastes like it should and just as is it described- rich, creamy, full tasting, tart enough without being super sour, sweet enough without lacking taste. I used fresh squeezed lemons and fresh zest, and I added extra zest to my mixture-- that's just because it looks pretty in the jars. I doubled the batch, and it ended up making two pints for storing and one 3/4 full on for tasting and the fridge.
I am an avid canner, and I wanted to try to adapt this recipe, which is essentially like a custard, to canning. So after I had mixed the ingredients as shown, and heated them on the stove to smoothe, I then put them in cleaned Ball jars with fresh lids an water-bathed them. As I suspected, the act of putting into a water bath and being surrounded by water precluded the need for constant stirring, and after 25 minutes simmering gently, my lemon curd came out GORGEOUS!! Thank you so much for this recipie- I am making it again tomorrow and continuing until I'm through lemon season, and I'm hoarding it all for myself- folks will have to come beg for it at my door, as lemon pie filing and lemon tarts are my favorites!
We had it for dinner over German Pancakes, though, and it was also divine. I bet the half jar lasts only until tomorrow afternoon!
