Rustic Lemon Curd
2011
Finally back to business after a long and lovely holiday touring southern Europe, you’d think the first item on my agenda would be to bore you all with the details of our roadtrip. Not so. Because before I get around to doing that, I first have to tell you about something I took with me.
I’ve already mentioned the ackees. Well, when I asked the Frenchies what they’d like from England, the next thing on their list was lemon curd. Now, there is plenty of fantastic lemon curd to be found in these parts, even organic and locally-made. But the best lemon curd I’ve ever had was my Nan’s, so I dug out her recipe and made some for them.
Nanny with my mom as a girl, circa 1949.
Nanny’s recipe, like most, is very simple. I’ve made a few changes over the years, which I hope she won’t mind. Hers called for margarine and I use butter. She wrote 3 lemons and I add 1 to make 4. And she used white sugar, which allows that vibrant yellow colour we’ve all come to expect. I don’t have white sugar in the house, opting instead for demerara, so my curd has brown undertones, which I think make it look like spreadable gold. Unrefined sugar also rounds out the flavour a bit, giving it a slight hint of caramel. Finally, I think Nan used to strain her curd, to make it lovely and pure, but I just don’t bother (see note 3 below).
The result is what I call ‘rustic’ lemon curd. Clearly homemade and all the more delicious for it. It’s wonderful spread on toast, in tarts, or sandwiched in a lemon sponge cake. Or you can do like me and eat it straight out of the jar by the spoonful.
| Rustic Lemon Curd |
|
- 6 oz butter (170g)
- 1 Lb brown sugar (450g)
- 4 lemons (zest and juice)
- 4 whole eggs, beaten
- Zest the lemons, then juice them, retaining both the zest and the juice.
- Mix together the butter, sugar, zest and juice in a double boiler until the sugar has melted.
- Temper the eggs by slowly whisking in a tablespoon at a time of the hot mixture until you’ve added about 5 tablespoons, then slowly pour the egg mixture into the saucepan, whisking as you go.
- Cook over gentle heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick (about 5 minutes). Remove from heat and let cool until no longer steaming.
- Pour into sterilised jam or Kilner jars and keep refrigerated. Use within 1-2 months.
1. If you (like me) don’t have a proper double-boiler (bain-marie), don’t fret. Just put about 2 inches of boiling water in a large saucepan over medium heat, and then put a smaller saucepan into it, so the smaller pan is being heated by the water boiling under it.
2. Try doubling the recipe and giving some away. It makes a great gift, especially in winter months (think Xmas) when a jar of sunshine is very welcome.
3. If you’re making this for a gift, you might like to strain it before letting it cool. This will remove any bits of cooked egg (white flecks) that inevitably turn up, despite your best tempering efforts. I skip this for several reasons. One, I’m too lazy. Two, I think the flecks prove it was homemade and three, straining it also removes the zest, which I think is fantastic left in.
4. You can make this recipe with just about any citrus fruit. Lime (6 limes) and grapefruit (1 and think pink!) work especially well, but I am keen to try kumquat!
20 comments
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Love your version, the golden sugar and the more lemons the better! Can’t wait to hear about your travel adventures.
I want to eat it like u do Ruby!
right from the jar!
Tq for the recipe! Photos indeed makes me very” tempting!
That really sounds awesome!
Is there a way to print the recipe without getting all the “extras”? (Looks great!)
Good question. I disabled copy/paste to deter blog thieves so I’ll have to see if there’s a way to still offer a printable version. Come back next week and I’ll hopefully have a solution up and running.
This curd looks fantastic and I really like the idea to give it out as a gift!
Thank you – I understand why you need to do it – but I need to save toner and paper
. I know a lot of blogs have a “print recipe” feature – and it pops up a page just like a recipe sheet – and you can print that. Found your blog through foodgawker and will keep checking back.
Love the slightly deeper gold you got from the brown sugar… so pretty! (BTW, I leave all the bits in my lemon curd too. I like getting the occasional hit of lemon zest on my tongue.)
Real food is always simple…and good…especially when eaten by the spoonful straight from the jar. Yum! Theresa
love the B&W vintage photo and the curd sounds so perfect for angel cake
What a beautiful lemon curd. I love how you called it spreadable gold.
Nice photo’s. Your kumquat suggestion sounds great.
Even on the second time I read & see the recipe, makes me really” want to eat it right on the Jar!
Great recipe Ruby!
And I just wanted you to know that you have an award on my site today…congratulations Ruby!
Lemon curd is so good is so many things and yours is a lovely recipe. Love that it’s your grandmother’s; family recipes that are passed down through the generations always seem to taste better.
“Clearly homemade and all the more delicious for it.” Indeed! This recipe sounds fantastic. Sharing things that you truly love… I bet your French friends really loved the lemon curd as well
XO!!!
Just spoke with my aunt, who had shown this post to my Nan, and apparently her original recipe DID call for butter. The margarine must have been an invention of my mother’s – we’ll never know. Oh, and it seems Nanny doesn’t strain her lemon curd either – she is just so good at making it that she doesn’t get any white bits. Wow.
Hi Ruby…First time here , saw many of your wonderful posts and chose to comment on this lemon curd. It is such a favorite of mine and even i love those zesty bits in it
Liked the use of brown sugar in it.
OMG! How precious is that black and white photo? Did I ever tell you how much I love lemon curd? Sometimes I make orange curd, sometimes orange and grapefruit too. I don’t strain mine either, eh! I think I might try it with demerera sugar now too, because I really like your mellow yellow. Yes, I really, really wanted to say that
Good Lord! Your spam filter likes me….. it really likes me
Couldn’t resist….
Hallelujah! Now you can go forth and comment! Oh, wait, I see from my moderation queue that you’ve done just that…