Lemon Curd Recipe & Explanation

Over the weekend I had a nice email/comment from a lady in the US asking me about what exactly lemon curd is. I can’t find your original comment but hope you will pop by again for an explanation & the recipe.

This lady also asked me what sausage rolls were and jumble sales.

Well sausage rolls are essentially sausage meat encased in puff pastry. I’m sure there must be some equivalent in the US. As for jumbles sales, sadly, they now seem to be a dim and distant memory. The growth of car boot sales really saw and created the demise of ‘Jumble Sales’, in my opinion.

Jumble sales were traditionally organised to raise funds for a variety of causes. The premise of a jumble sale was much more community based rather than commercial. The majority of car boot sales raise funds for the individual rather than a good cause, charity, church or community. When thinking about jumbles sales think thrift, charity and yard sales and an amalgamation of these is a close enough concept of a jumble sale.

Lots of recycling, re-using, up cycling etc. One person’s trash is another person’s treasure.

This is the recipe I used taken from Lemon Curd Recipe

Wikipedia

Fruit curd

Homemade lemon curd

Fruit curd is a dessert spread and topping usually made with lemon, orange or raspberry.^[1] The basic ingredients are beaten egg yolks, sugar, fruit juice and zest which are gently cooked together until thick and then allowed to cool, forming a soft, smooth, intensely-flavored spread. Some recipes also include egg whites and/or butter.^[2]

In late 19th and early 20th century England, homemade lemon curd was traditionally served with bread or scones at afternoon tea as an alternative to jam, and as a filling for cakes, small pastries and tarts.^[3] Homemade lemon curd was usually made in relatively small amounts as it did not keep as well as jam. In more modern times larger quantities are feasible because of the use of refrigeration. Commercially manufactured curds often contain additional preservatives and thickening agents.^[4]

Modern commercially made curds are still a popular spread for bread, scones, toast or muffins. They can also be used as a flavoring for desserts or yogurt. Lemon-meringue pie, made with lemon curd and topped with meringue, has been a favorite dessert in Britain and the United States since the nineteenth century.^[3]

Curds are different from pie fillings or custards in that they contain a higher proportion of juice and zest, which gives them a more intense flavor.^[5] Also, curds containing butter have a smoother and creamier texture than both pie fillings and custards; both contain little or no butter and use cornstarch or flour for thickening. Additionally, unlike custards, curds are not usually eaten on their own.

Other flavor variations also exist using citrus fruits such as limes and tangerines,^[6] passion fruit,^[7] mangoes,^[8] and berries such as cranberries or blackberries.^[9] Hundreds of commercial variations are sold globally.

Ingredients:

• 4 large lemons
• 1 lb (450 g) caster sugar
• 6 eggs
• 4 ozs (112 g) butter

Method:

1. Wash the lemons and remove very thin strips of rind from two of them.
2. Cut in half and squeeze out the juice, removing any pips.
3. Put the juice and rind, beaten eggs and other ingredients into a double saucepan (or heatproof-bowl over a hot pan of water) on low heat and heat gently until all the sugar has dissolved.
4. Continue cooking until the mixture thickens.
5. Remove the rind.
6. Turn into hot clean jars and seal at once.

Makes about 2 lbs (900 g) of Lemon Curd.