Lemon Curd: A Learning Experience

Before I tell my tale, I want to ask any of my readers that if they’ve made any kind of fruit curd before to please share their experiences in the comment section.? I would be most interested in any input you might have.

Lemon curd.? The stuff of citrus lover’s dreams, it costs anywhere between $6 and $10 a jar in a store.? After attempting my own, I can see why.?

?I’m still on the fence about making this and pressure canning it for future use.? It’s my own opinion that the extra cooking time that pressure canning entails overcooks the curd, but if you make this for yourself, you can make your own call.??

?Keep in mind that I am not a home canning novice.? I’ve been doing this for a long time and have won blue ribbons at our county fair for my jams and jellies.? This stuff almost left me doubting my abilities.

That being said, my girlfriend Ressie said it tastes wonderful.? And it does.? It’s the change in color that wigs me out.? Because it was a bright lemony yellow before I pressure canned it.? Aftward, it looked like this:

It was very disturbing how much darker it got.? I was worried that it was burnt…but it’s not.? I wish I would have taken before photos.? And the raspberry curd is even more shocking.? I made raspberry curd last night.? It tastes heavenly…but the color change is just…jaw dropping.? Exhibit A:

Prior to pressure canning it, it was a pretty red color.? It resembled pie filling in color, but it was quite thin in texture.? Pressure canning thickened it, but changed the color significantly, in my opinion.

I used the recipes and followed the method exactly from the book Blue Ribbon Preserves by Linda J. Amendt.? This book is wonderful.? I have made jellies and jams from the recipes and they are fantastic.? Again, I am still on the fence about the curd.

So here you go, the recipe and method for Lemon Curd, by Linda J. Amendt.? I highly recommend buying this book, it’s so inexpensive and so wonderful to read.? This recipe calls for Meyer Lemons–but you can use regular lemons instead, which is what I did.

Meyer Lemon Curd

2 1/2 cups superfine sugar

1/2 cup fresh Meyer lemon zest

4 large eggs

7 large egg yolks

1 cup strained fresh Meyer lemon juice (7 to 8 medium lemons)

3/4 cup unsalted butter, chilled, cut into 10 pieces

Directions

Place a medium glass or metal bowl in the refrigerator to chill.

In a small bowl, combine the superfine sugar and lemon zest, stirring until well blended.? Let stand for 30 minutes to allow the sugar to pick up the citrus flavor of the zest.

Fill the bottom pan of a double boiler or medium saucepan about 1/4 full of water.? Over medium-high heat, bring the water to a gentle boil.

In the top pan of a double boiler or a medium metal bowl, lightly beat the whole eggs and egg yolks.? Gradually whisk in the sugar and zest until well blended.? Stir in the lemon juice.? Add the butter pieces.

Place the pan or bowl over the pan of boiling water.? Make sure the top pan sits well above the water so the curd wil be cooked by the steam only, not the boiling water.? Reduce the heat to keep the water from boiling too vigorously.?

Slowly heat the mixture, stirring constantly with a flexible spatula or spoon.? Stir gently or the curd will be filled with tiny air bubbles.? Scrape the bottom of the pan frequently to prevent scorching or curdling.? Cook the mixture until it reaches a temperature between 168F and 170F (76C and 77C), about 5 to?7 minutes.

Remove the top pan or bowl from the double boiler and place it on a dish towel.? Continue to stir the mixture until the curd thickens and coats t he back of a metal spoon, about 5 minutes.? Remove the chilled bowl from the refrigerator.? Place a fine-meshed sieve over the bowl.? Slowly pour the curd through the sieve and into the chilled bowl to strain the zest and any small lumps from the curd.? Gently stir the curd to remove any air bubbles.?

Ladle the curd into hot jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace.? Using a plastic knife, remove any trapped air bubbles.? Wipe the jar rims and threads with a clean, damp cloth.? Cover with hot lids and apply screw rings.? Process 4-ounce jars and half-pint jars for 10 minutes at 11 pounds of pressure in a dial-gauge pressure canner or at 10 pounds pressure in a weighted-gauge pressure canner.

Makes 3 half pint jars.

Raspberry Curd

This recipe should not be doubled because the curd may not thicken.

1 10 oz. package frozen red raspberries

2 large eggs

4 large egg yolks

7/8 cup superfine sugar

1/2 cup raspberry juice

2 teaspoons strained fresh lemon juice

1/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces

Directions

To extract the juice: Thaw the raspberries.? Do no rinse or drain.? In a flat-bottomed bowl or pan, using a vegetable masher, crush the raspberries.

Place a fine-meshed sieve over a bowl.? Pour the raspberry pulp and juice into the sieve to separate the juice from the pulp and seeds.? Gently press the pulp with a spoon to release the juice.? Discare the pulp and the seeds.? Measure 1/2 cup juice.

Place a medium glass or metal bowl in the refrigerator to chill.

Fill the bottom pan of a double boiler or medium saucepan about 1/4 full of water.? Over medium-high heat, bring the water to a gentle boil.

In the top pan of a double boiler or a medium metal bowl, lightly beat the whole eggs and egg yolks.? Gradually whisk in the sugar until well blended.? Stir in the? raspberry juice and lemon juice.? Add the butter pieces.

Place the pan or bowl over the pan of boiling water.? Make sure the top pan sits well above the water so the curd wil be cooked by the steam only, not the boiling water.? Reduce the heat to keep the water from boiling too vigorously.?

Slowly heat the mixture, stirring constantly with a flexible spatula or spoon.? Stir gently or the curd will be filled with tiny air bubbles.? Scrape the bottom of the pan frequently to prevent scorching or curdling.? Cook the mixture until it reaches a temperature between 168F and 170F (76C and 77C), about 5 to?7 minutes.

Remove the top pan or bowl from the double boiler and place it on a dish towel.? Continue to stir the mixture until the curd thickens and coats t he back of a metal spoon, about 5 minutes.? Remove the chilled bowl from the refrigerator.? Place a fine-meshed sieve over the bowl.? Slowly pour the curd through the sieve and into the chilled bowl to strain any small lumps from the curd.? Gently stir the curd to remove any air bubbles.?

Ladle the curd into hot jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace.? Using a plastic knife, remove any trapped air bubbles.? Wipe the jar rims and threads with a clean, damp cloth.? Cover with hot lids and apply screw rings.? Process 4-ounce jars and half-pint jars for 10 minutes at 11 pounds of pressure in a dial-gauge pressure canner or at 10 pounds pressure in a weighted-gauge pressure canner.

Makes 3?(four ounce)?jars.

If you try this, please post and let me know…I would love to hear about your experience and see pictures of your finished product.

S.