Delicious Homemade Lemon Curd
Do you like lemon curd? I absolutely love it. If you have been following us on the blog, you know we love making Meringue buttercream (Swiss or Italian). But, there are usually a lot of egg yolks leftover. So, what do you do with the excess egg yolks? Solution: make curd of course, you can make orange, lemon, or lime. Homemade lemon curd is super easy to make and only uses five ingredients. It is tart, sweet, and delicious, you can eat it with a spoon. If you love lemons, then this is for you.
What is Lemon Curd?
Lemon curd is a tangy filling that is made using egg yolks, butter, sugar, and lemon juice that has been cooked until thickened and is stored in the refrigerator. Egg yolks are essential to the recipe in that they add richness and thickens the curd. It can be store-bought, but nothing beats homemade especially since it is so easy.
How do You Use Lemon Curd?
Lemon curd can be used in many ways. It can be used as a topping or a filling. It is perfect for pies such as lemon meringue, scones, and as a filling for cakes, and cupcakes. I made curd for the first time for a lemon fanatic, many years ago and I was hooked. Use it to increase the flavor of vanilla cupcakes, lemon cupcakes, or lemon cakes such as this lemon blackberry cake.
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Ingredients/Materials
This is such an easy recipe, you only need five ingredients and one of which is used twice, and that’s the lemon. The five ingredients are egg yolks, sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, and cold butter. In addition to the five ingredients, you are going to need a wire whisk, a heatproof bowl, strainer, food thermometer, and a saucepan (preferably one that is thick on the bottom).
How to Make Lemon Curd
- Separate the yolks from the whites one at a time and add them to a bowl. The best time to separate eggs is when the eggs are cold.
- Add the yolks, sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice to a small saucepan over medium heat.
- Whisk constantly to prevent the eggs from becoming scrambled.
- Remove it from the heat once the mixture has thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon and right before it comes to a full boil. In addition, use a kitchen thermometer to make it has reached 165 degrees. This makes sure it is safe to eat.
- Then add the cold butter. Mix until the butter has fully melted.
- Use a heatproof bowl and a strainer, strain the lemon curd into the bowl. I used a measuring cup. You should get between 1 1/2 cups and 1 2/3 cups.
- Then place plastic wrap on the surface of the curd, and refrigerate overnight. The curd will thicken up even more as it sits.
- Keep it refrigerated until ready to serve.
That’s it easy homemade curd. If you like this recipe, don’t forget to share the love. Until next time happy caking.
Delicious Homemade Lemon Curd
Ingredients
Lemon Curd
- 6 large egg yolks
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
- 1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (Cold butter cut into small pieces)
Instructions
Directions for Making Lemon Curd:
- Whisk together granulated sugar, lemon zest, and egg yolks and place in a medium saucepan over medium heat.
- Then, add in the lemon juice.
- Continue to whisk until the mixture has thickened and small bubbles begin to form around the edge of the pan. The mixture should be able to coat the back of a spoon and has reached 165 degrees F. Do not allow it to get to a full boil.
- Remove the saucepan from heat and add the cold butter.
- Pour the lemon curd through a mesh sieve into a heat-proof bowl.
- Then, press plastic wrap against the surface of the curd; refrigerate until cool, either overnight or 2-3 hours. Must be refrigerated.
Notes
